The changing incidence of plasmodium vivax infection in subjects with malaria (Short report)

ABSTRACT

Malaria is still the most important parasitic disease in the tropics. Malaria is caused by a protozoan parasite of the genus Plasmodium, of which three species are commonly known to infect people living in Union of Myanmar. They are P. falciparum, P. vivax and P. malariae. Although vivax and malariae infections are not generally life threatening , they can cause a sometime severe acute illness. Vivax forms of malaria are characterized by relapses i.e. reappearance of symptoms of parasitaemia following a "latent" or symptomless period of up to five years. Chronic or repeated vivax malaria infection often causes impaired growth in activity in adults. Therefore our findings will suggest closer supervision and effective measures against increasing incidence of vivax malaria in some areas of Myanmar Naing-Ngan.