Malaria Disease By Learning Symptoms, Treatment Or Antimalarial Medications

Malaria is a mosquito-borne-infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by parasitic protozoans (microorganisms).The signs and symptoms malaria typically begin 8-25 days following infection; however, symptoms may occur later in those who have taken antimalarial medications as prevention.Plasmodium flaciparum is a protozoan parasite, one of the species of Plasmodium that cause malaria in humans.It is transmitted by the female Anopheles mosquito.

I. The signs and symptoms of malaria

The signs of Malaria

• Headache
• Fever
• Shivering
• Joint pain
• Vomiting
• Hemolytic anemia
• Jaundice
• Hemoglobin in the urine
• Retinal damage
• Convulsions

The Symptoms of Malaria

• Shaking chills that can range from moderate to severe
• Headache
• Fever
• Sweating
• Fatigue
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Yellow skin
• Seizures
• Coma
• Bloody stools

The life cycle of malaria

The life cycle of malaria parasites.A mosquito causes an infection by a bite.First sporozoites enter the bloodstream, and migrate to the liver.They infect liver cells, where they multiply into merozoites, rupture the liver cells, and return to the bloodstream.The merozoites infect red blood cells, where they develop into ring forms, trophozoites and schizonts that in turn produce further merozoites.Sexual forms are also produced, which, if taken up by a mosquito, will infect the insect and continue the life cycle.

II. Classification of Malaria

World Health Organization (WHO) classified the criteria of malaria either severe or uncomplicated.A Severe Plasmodium falciparum or cerebral malaria presents with neurological symptoms including coma ( a Glasgow coma scale less than 11, or a Blantyre coma scale greater than 3) or with a coma that lasts longer thirty minutes after a seizure.

The Criteria of Severe or Uncomplicated Malaria

• Decreased unconciousness.
• 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 adult 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 (5g/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 (ųl) in low-intensity transmission areas, or 250.000 per ųl in high intensity transmission areas.

III Treatment

Malaria is treated with antimalarial medications (artemisinin), the second medication (mefloquine, lumefantrine or sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine.If an artemisinin is not available, Quinine along with doxycycline may be used.  If malaria is confirmed before treatment possibly started due to concerns of increasing drug resistance.

Chloroquine is the preffered treatment of malaria for women in pregnancy.Quinine, proguanil and clindamycin (cleocin) typically are used for pregnancy people with malaria that is resistant to chloroquine.

People with falciparum malaria have the most severe symptoms so they need to be monitored in the intensive care unit of a hospital during  first day of treatment because the disease causes  breathing problems, kidney failure and coma.

There are four antimalarial medications for foreign travel :

• Chloroquine (Aralen) : This medication is taken once a week, from one to two weeks  prior to departure until four weeks after returning.This regiment will be tolerated by most people, with a few patients  experiencing nausea, itching, dizziness, blurry vision, and headache.Taking the drug after meal to minimize these symptoms.
• Mefloquine (Lariam) : This medication is taken once a week, from one to two weeks prior to departure until four weeks after returning.The side effects of the drug include bad dream, nausea, dizziness, concentrating difficulties, and seizures.It causes hallucination rarely.Depression is uncommon effect.People with an electrocardiogram or a rhytm disturbance of heart, people having seizures and people with a neurological or psychiatric disease should not take this medication.
• Doxycycline (Vibramycin) : This medication is taken once per day, from two days before departure to four weeks after returning.It can cause more sensitive to the sun and increase sunburn risk.Women in pregnancy and children should not take this drug.
• Proguanil (Malarone) and Atovaquone : This medication is taken one tablet at about the same time each day , starting one to two days before departure until seven days after returning.The side effects of proguanil include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and headache.Women in pregnancy, breastfeeding, and people with a severe kidney disease should not take this medication.