Malaria relapse after 20 years

The Emergency Department of the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases recently admitted patient BV D, 37 years old, of the Mong ethnic group, from Hoa Binh province, who suffered a relapse of malaria after 20 years.

The patient was diagnosed with severe malaria and severe anemia. This is a disease he has suffered from for over 20 years.

Prior to hospitalization, Mr. D. had a persistent high fever ranging from 39 to 40 degrees Celsius for five consecutive days. The patient exhibited symptoms such as chills, headache, fatigue, poor appetite, abdominal distension, enlarged liver, increasingly pronounced jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes), and decreased, dark urine output.

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

At the initial medical facility, doctors performed a parasite screening which revealed a positive result for P.vivax malaria. He was then transferred to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in a critical condition with respiratory failure, liver failure, and severe hemolysis.

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

Through questioning about his background, it was learned that Mr. D. worked as a well driller, a job that required him to frequently travel and work in many different locations.

During this period, he experienced unexplained fevers. In 2002 in the Central Highlands and 2003 in Hoa Binh, Mr. BV D had previously contracted malaria caused by P. vivax.

According to Dr. Truong Tu The Bao, from the Emergency Department of the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, the patient was diagnosed with malignant malaria, severe anemia, and acute liver failure. Due to severe hemolysis, the patient experienced shortness of breath and respiratory failure.

Currently, the patient is being treated with specific medications and blood transfusions. After a period of treatment, the patient's condition has stabilized, and they can breathe without oxygen support.

Patient D.'s case serves as an important warning about the risk of relapsing into vivax malaria after many years. The P. vivax malaria parasite remained in his body for two decades and has now recurred under favorable conditions.

This is a typical case demonstrating the danger of the malaria parasite P.vivax, which can "lie dormant" in the liver and reappear when favorable conditions arise.

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 complacent because the disease can recur.

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

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

Malaria occurs mainly in mountainous forest areas, where people practice slash-and-burn agriculture, grow rubber, or travel to malaria-endemic regions, etc. Patients are diagnosed with malaria parasite infection when they have a positive blood test result.

Those at risk of malaria include: young children, infants, the elderly, and pregnant women. Notably, some cases of congenital malaria, although rare, appear early in life, shortly after birth. In these cases, the child is fussy, has a fever, jaundice, and an enlarged liver and spleen.

In children over 6 months old, malaria can cause persistent high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distension, enlarged liver and spleen, signs of meningitis, seizures, and a high mortality rate.

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