Today is
world Malaria Day! Before knowing the role of PT, lets see what is Malaria.
What is
Malaria? Malaria is
a mosquito-borne infectious disease.
What are
the clinical manifestations of Malaria?
Malaria causes symptoms that typically include
fever and headache, which in severe cases can progress to coma or death.
Who is
more prone to get infected by Malaria?
The most vulnerable are persons with no or little immunity
against the disease.
·
Young
children, who have not yet developed partial immunity to malaria
·
Pregnant
women, whose immunity is decreased by pregnancy, especially during the first
and second pregnancies
·
Travelers
or migrants coming from areas with little or no malaria transmission, who lack
immunity.
Prevalence
in India -
Malaria is transmitted year-round.
Types of Malaria –
Malaria is
classified into either "severe" or "uncomplicated" by the
World Health Organization (WHO). It is deemed severe when any of the following
criteria are present, otherwise it is considered uncomplicated.
Decreased consciousness
Significant weakness such that the person is unable to walk
Inability to feed
Two or more convulsions
Low blood pressure (less than 70 mmHg in adults and 50 mmHg in children)
Breathing problems
Circulatory shock
Kidney failure or hemoglobin in the urine
Bleeding problems, or hemoglobin less than 50 g/L (5 g/dL)
Pulmonary oedema
Blood glucose less than 2.2 mmol/L (40 mg/dL)
Acidosis or lactate levels of greater than 5 mmol/L
A parasite level in the blood of greater than 100,000 per microlitre (µL) in low-intensity transmission areas, or 250,000 per µL in high-intensity transmission areas.
Cerebral
malaria is defined as a severe P. falciparum-malaria presenting with
neurological symptoms, including coma (with a Glasgow coma scale less than 11,
or a Blantyre coma scale greater than 3), or with a coma that lasts longer than
30 minutes after a seizure.
How do we diagnose Malaria?
Recent
travel history, enlarged spleen, fever, low number of platelets in the blood,
and higher-than-normal levels of bilirubin in the blood combined with a normal
level of white blood cells.
Management -
Antimalarial Drugs
Prevention -
Education about Malaria and its seriousness.
Insects Repellents
Mosquito Nets
Certain Spray
Cover the source of open water and/or stagnant water
In the next post about Role of PT in Malaria Management.
References -