MEDI40004 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Plasmodium Vivax, Hypoglycemia, Malaria
27 Jan 2021
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Document Summary
Five species infect humans (falciparum, vivax, ovale, malaria and knowlesi: plasmodium falciparum causes most deaths, p. vivax also associated with severe disease, p. knowlesi acquired via mosquitoes from monkeys. Risk factors mostly seen in infants and young children (6 months to 6 years: young children have high density of parasite but decreases as they grow older, malaria can reoccur at any age. If the infect the liver and enter the bloodstream, no symptoms can be seen: never make it to the liver, clinical malaria if developed, 1 in 100. Severe malaria -> life threatening and absence of treatment lead to death. Severe anemia (pcv<15%) in 6m to 3 y age group. Urgent transfusion: cerebral malaria in older kids- peak 3-4 years. Cerebral malaria: parasites in the brain causing coma, capillaries can be blocked with rbcs that contains malaria causing parasites -> impairs blood flow.
