Malaria recurrence after 20 years

The Emergency Department, Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases has just received patient BV D, 37 years old, Mong ethnic, from Hoa Binh province, who had a relapse of malaria after 20 years.

The patient was diagnosed with malignant malaria - severe anemia. This is a disease that he had suffered from for more than 20 years.

Before being admitted to the hospital, Mr. D. had a high fever lasting from 39 to 40 degrees Celsius for 5 consecutive days. The patient had symptoms such as chills, headache, fatigue, poor appetite, abdominal distension, enlarged liver, increasingly obvious jaundice and yellow eyes, along with little and dark urine.

Every year, more than 400,000 people die from malaria worldwide.

At the primary medical facility, doctors examined for parasites and the results showed P.vivax (+) malaria. He was then transferred to the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases in a state of respiratory failure, liver failure, and severe hemolysis.

Although there was no previous history of liver disease, severe malaria caused severe liver dysfunction.

Through prehistoric excavation, it is known that Mr. D. worked as a well driller, a job that required him to frequently travel and work in many locations.

During this process, he had fevers of unknown origin. In 2002 in the Central Highlands and 2003 in Hoa Binh, Mr. BV D had malaria caused by P.vivax.

Doctor Truong Tu The Bao, Emergency Department, Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, said that the patient was diagnosed with malignant malaria, severe anemia, and acute liver failure. Due to severe hemolysis, the patient had difficulty breathing and respiratory failure.

Currently, the patient is being treated with specific drugs and blood transfusions. After a period of treatment, the patient is stable and can breathe without oxygen support.

The case of patient D. is an important warning about the risk of recurrence of vivax malaria after many years. The p.vivax malaria parasite remained in his body for two decades, and now it has recurred when the right conditions are met.

This is a typical case showing the danger of the P.vivax malaria parasite, which has the ability to "sleep" in the liver and recur when conditions are favorable.

Therefore, people who have had malaria, especially those living or working in high-risk areas, need to pay attention to their health and should not be subjective because the disease can recur.

Every year, more than 400,000 people die from malaria worldwide. The disease occurs mainly in tropical and subtropical countries. According to experts, malaria is a disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite with symptoms of headache, fever, chills and easy death.

People get the disease 10-15 days after being bitten by an Anopheles mosquito. The disease can be transmitted through blood transfusion, from mother to child, sharing needles contaminated with blood containing malaria parasites or being bitten by mosquitoes.

Malaria occurs mainly in mountainous areas where people cultivate fields, grow rubber, travel to malaria-endemic areas, etc. Patients are identified as infected with malaria-causing parasites when they have positive blood test results.

People at risk of malaria include: Children, infants, the elderly, and pregnant women. Notably, some cases of congenital malaria, although rare, appear soon after birth. At this time, the child is fussy, has a fever, jaundice, and an enlarged liver and spleen.

Children over 6 months old with malaria will have continuous high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distension, enlarged liver and spleen, signs of meningitis, convulsions, and a high mortality rate.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/tai-phat-sot-ret-sau-20-nam-d223603.html