Various clinical presentations of falciparum malaria and outcome: a study of 100 patients

ABSTRACT

Various clinical presentations of falciparum malaria and outcome. Malaria is an important disease worldwide, result in estimated 300-500 million new cases and 1.5-2.7 million deaths per year. Most deaths occur due to Plasmodium Falciparum infection. Falciparum malaria is a major community problem in our country. Presentation of falciparum malaria with paroxysms of fever chills and rigors are easy to diagnose and treat. Case series study. This study was conducted at DUHS from January 2011 to December 2011. 100 patients above 12 years of age with any gender, presenting with high grade fever and diagnosed as a case of Falciparum malaria on thick and thin film are included in this study. Among 100 patients 69 were male and 31 females. Clinically all patients presents with fever, while 69 with headache, 39 with vomiting and 28 with altered level of consciousness. The most common sign was anemia i.e. in 40 patients, splenomegaly in 37, and jaundice was found in 35 patients. 7 patients were expired during the study. Falciparum malaria is a notorious for various presentations which may mimic like upper and lower respiratory tract infection, acute gastroenteritis and bacterial meningitis. The treating physician should be aware of the various presentations because early detection and treatment may reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with falciparum malaria