Reoccurring Malaria

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QUESTION

Can malaria reoccur year after year from a single infection? I have been told that it comes back every year by many people. I have had malaria once and it never came back after successful treatment. My thinking is that once the parasite has been eliminated from the system it is gone unless you get bitten again.

ANSWER

There are several different types of malaria that infect humans, and two of these species (Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium vivax) can recur from year to year after a single infection.

The way it happens is that these types of malaria are able to form dormant life stages which hide in the liver. Most malaria medication only targets the blood stage form of malaria, and so these liver stages escape being killed by the medication, and can survive for long periods of time without the patient knowing about them. Then, at some point later (no one knows exactly what triggers the relapse—there is evidence that infection with other forms of malaria can instigate relapse, or being bitten by mosquitoes, or even just the climate), the liver stages activate again and re-enter the blood stream, which causes a renewal of symptoms.

It is possible to prevent these relapses—there is one type of medication, called primaquine, which is able to kill the dormant liver stages and thus completely clear the patient of malaria. However, it is important to talk to your doctor before taking primaquine, as it is not suitable for some people (especially those with G6DP deficiency).

Apart from these two types of malaria, the other three forms that infect people (P. falciparum, P. malariae and P. knowlesi) cannot reoccur in the same way as described above – if you have been infected with one of these, and then been successfully treated, you cannot get the disease again unless you are bitten by another infected mosquito.

Symtoms of Malaria

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QUESTION

Please tell me the symptoms of malaria.

ANSWER

Symptoms of malaria include fever and flu-like illness, including shaking chills, headache, muscle aches, and tiredness. Due to the way in which the malaria parasite reproduces in the human body, fevers occurring in a cyclical fashion (i.e. high fever one day, no fever the next day, then recurrence of fever on the third or fourth day, depending on the type of malaria) are a characteristic symptom of malaria, but may not be present in all cases. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may also occur. Malaria may cause anemia and jaundice (yellow coloring of the skin and eyes) because of the loss of red blood cells. Symptoms usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite. If not treated, malaria can quickly become life-threatening by disrupting the blood supply to vital organs. When blood supply to the brain is disrupted during malarial infection, the resulting condition, characterised by seizures, mental confusion, coma, and death, is known as “cerebral malaria”, and is associated with Plasmodium falciparum, the most deadly form of malaria.

Please check your article: Symptoms and Causes of Malaria

Malaria while in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia?

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QUESTION

My husband and I recently adopted our second child from Ethiopia about 3 months ago. We did NOT take Malaria medication because we only stayed in Addis Ababa and did not travel outside the city—or very far from out hotel for that matter. I’ve recently started very odd symptoms—aches, chills but no fever, general feeling of malaise, runs, dry cough, hot flashes followed by sweats, and fatigue so severe I sometimes don’t have the energy to talk. The weird part is that the symptoms come and go. I feel fine for a few days, and then boom! Down for the count again, then fine the next day. I’m going to see my Dr. tomorrow, but could I have Malaria???

ANSWER

While the cyclical symptoms, occurring every few days, are similar to the cycles experienced by malaria sufferers, the lack of a fever is a good indication that you don’t have malaria. Moreover, as you clearly researched before your trip, Addis Ababa is not a transmission zone for malaria, so it is unlikely that you would have been infected during your trip. By now you will have probably seen your doctor, and I suspect s/he will have ruled out malaria. If you really want peace of mind, you can also ask for a blood test, just to check. I hope your condition is diagnosed and treated soon, and you recover quickly!

What is Malaria?

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QUESTION

What is malaria?

ANSWER

Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a parasite that commonly infects a certain type of mosquito which feeds on humans. People who get malaria are typically very sick with high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness. Four kinds of malaria parasites can infect humans: Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae. Infection with P. falciparum, if not promptly treated, may lead to death. Although malaria can be a deadly disease, illness and death from malaria can usually be prevented.

Headaches, Sweats, Nausea, Fatigue

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QUESTION

Since visiting Gambia I have been off food, suffering from headaches, sweats, nausea, tiredness and diarrhea after every meal, when I can eat that is. Do you think I should go to the doctor for a test for malaria?

ANSWER

Yes—whenever you have symptoms that include fever and sweats after visiting an area of high malaria transmission, it is always worthwhile getting a malaria test. With a positive diagnosis, the doctor can find out what type of malaria you have and then give you the most appropriate treatment. If the test is negative, the doctor is then able to look for other possible causes of your symptoms, such as an intestinal parasitic infection or some other illness.

How can I get malaria pills?

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QUESTION

I do have symptoms of severe malaria. How can I get malarial pills in Holland? I went to the hospital the doctors said nothing is wrong with me which is not true.

ANSWER

If you have the symptoms of severe malaria (high fever, chills, nausea, body aches) then you should go to an emergency room at a hospital immediately.

Malaria infection can be very serious if not treated promptly and with appropriate medicine. You must inform the doctors of your travel and medical history. Malaria is not transmitted in Holland so you must have been infected elsewhere.

Tell the doctors in particular if you have recently (in the past month) travelled to an area where malaria is transmitted (sub-Saharan Africa, South America, some parts of Central America, Haiti, Central Asia, South-East Asia, many of the Pacific Islands). I am certain that if you truly have the symptoms of severe malaria they will not turn you away from the hospital, and especially not if you make it clear that you may have been at risk for malaria.

However, if you have not travelled to malarial areas recently, then it is much less likely you have malaria. However, some forms of malaria can “relapse” after a long dormant period. If you have had malaria previously, and have suffered these relapses, then this is also very important information to tell your doctors.

It is important to take anti-malarial medication only if you have had a blood test to confirm that you have malaria. The symptoms are general enough that they are often mistaken for malaria when they are in fact caused by another disease. Moreover, in most parts of Europe, it is difficult to get malaria medication without a prescription.

It is very important that you visit an emergency room, hospital or your doctor as soon as possible to get tested for malaria and given the appropriate treatment if indeed you test positive for malaria.

Information About Malaria

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QUESTION

What is malaria?

ANSWER

Malaria is a serious and sometimes fatal disease caused by a tiny parasite that commonly infects a certain type of mosquito (of the genus Anopheles) which feeds on humans. People who get malaria are typically very sick with high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness. Four kinds of malaria parasites can infect humans: Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae. Infection with P. falciparum, if not promptly treated, may lead to death. Although malaria can be a deadly disease, illness and death from malaria can usually be prevented.

What are the symptoms of malaria?

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QUESTION

What are the symptoms of malaria?

ANSWER

Symptoms of malaria include fever and flu-like illness, including shaking chills, headache, muscle aches, and tiredness. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may also occur. Malaria may cause anemia and jaundice (yellow coloring of the skin and eyes) because of the loss of red blood cells.

Symptoms usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite. If not treated, malaria can quickly become life-threatening by disrupting the blood supply to vital organs. Infection with one type of malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, if not promptly treated, may cause kidney failure, seizures, mental confusion, coma, and death. In many parts of the world, the parasites have developed resistance to a number of malaria medicines.

Cyclical Fever and Malaria Symptoms

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QUESTION

My dad is not well from last one month. In the evening time he feels headache, neck pain and 102 Temp.

Can you please tell me can it be Malaria.

ANSWER

Those symptoms can be characteristic of malaria—cyclical fever is a key symptom, though usually the cycles are every other day or even every third day (depending on the type of malaria). However, in some cases the cycles are more frequent or the patient may even have constant fever.

One of the difficulties with diagnosing malaria is that its symptoms are very general and can therefore be mistaken for many other illnesses. Likewise, in areas of high malaria transmission, doctors may assume a feverish illness is malaria without thinking about other possible diseases. As such, it is crucial that you take your father for a blood test, which is the only accurate way to diagnose malaria.

The doctor or clinician will either make a blood film and look at it under the microscope, or use a tiny drop of blood in a rapid diagnostic test. Either way, it is important for them to see evidence of a malaria infection before they give your father treatment. The diagnostic test should also show which type of malaria your father has (if indeed he has malaria), and this will also help to determine which is the most appropriate type of medication.

Malaria After Doxycycline?

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QUESTION

I recently spent a month in Asia. I took doxycycline tablets for malaria. I took them for the month I was away and when I returned. I took the full course and had been fine. Within two days of completing the course I became ill. This has be going on for about a month now with severe headaches, nausea, dizziness, very tired all the time and feeling like I’m going to faint. I have been to the doctor five times, they think this is a virus, I have been tested for malaria and dengue fever. I am only just now starting to feel better. What could this be?

ANSWER

Since you are beginning to feel better, I would go with your doctors’ diagnosis of a viral infection of some kind. It is also possible that you were infected with intestinal amoebas or even worms. A more accurate diagnosis would require faecal sample and possibly blood tests. You did the right thing by getting tested for malaria and making sure you didn’t have dengue.