Clinical presentation of neonatal malaria

ABSTRACT

To study the prevalence, clinical presentation and laboratory findings in neonates suffering from malaria. Paediatrics Unit-I Bahawal Victoria Hospital, Bahawalpur from April 2006 to March 2008. Neonates with negative blood culture but positive slides for malarial parasites were included. The prevalence rate of neonatal malaria was 3.06%. 54% cases were due to plasmodium falciparum and 40% were due to plasmodium vivax while in 6% cases species could not be identified. The male to female ratio was 1.51. 46% cases presented within 7 days of birth. 80% cases were born by spontaneous vaginal delivery, 16% by spontaneous vaginal delivery with episiotomy while 4% by Cesarean section. Fever was present in 100%, hypothermia on examination in 4%, splenomegaly in 24%, hepatomegaly in 28%, jaundice in 30%, irritability in 52%, reluctant to feed in 8%, vomiting in 48%, cough in 8%, diarrhea in 50%, abdominal distension in 8%, seizures in 8%, apnoea in 4%, lethargy in 24%, respiratory distress in 28%, bloody stool in 4%, leucopenia in 6%, anemia in 40%, thrombocytopenia in 6% and hypoglycemia in 10% cases. There was no statistically significant difference in the clinical features or laboratory findings of malaria due to both the species. Neonatal malaria is, although, uncommon but resembles to that of neonatal sepsis and clinical presentation of malaria due to falciparum or vivax is same