QUESTION: What are reasons for the increasing number of cases of malaria? ANSWER: As I recently wrote in answer to another Q&A post, it is difficult to determine whether cases of malaria are indeed increasing or not. For one, a large number of cases are not reported every year, making accurate estimates difficult. Secondly, the world's population is growing, and it is growing at the … [Read more...]
What does malaria cause?
QUESTION: What does malaria cause? ANSWER: Malaria is a disease. It is caused by tiny single-celled parasites called Plasmodium, which are transmitted through the bite of infected Anopheles mosquitoes. There are many symptoms that occur as a result of infection with malaria, namely fever, chills, headaches and nausea, among others. Malaria can be a very serious disease, especially if not … [Read more...]
Helping Those Affected with Malaria in Africa
QUESTION: What are some things that might be done to make the situation better for those most affected with malaria in Africa? ANSWER: Currently, the emphasis on decreasing the burden of malaria on those most affected in Africa is based on a combination of prevention, education, research and treatment. In more detail: Prevention: This is arguably one of the keys to sustainably reducing … [Read more...]
When was malaria first found in humans?
QUESTION: When was the first case of malaria in humans discovered? What did the name malaria originate from? ANSWER: Malaria has been known to humans for thousands of years; its earliest record is from around 2700 BCE in an ancient Chinese medical text. The ancient Greeks, Egyptians and Indians also recorded cases of malaria and described its symptoms. However, the parasite that causes … [Read more...]
Current Status of Malaria
QUESTION: What is the current status on malaria? And does P.knowlesi spp. pose a greater threat compared to the others? Does the number malaria cases increase every year globally? Is P. knowlesi spp. more dangerous than the others and why? ANSWER: I'll answer your question about Plasmodium knowlesi first. So far, it is considered a relatively minor source of malaria in humans, as its … [Read more...]
Malaria After Blood Transfusion
QUESTION: How many days does it take to become symptomatic after a blood transfusion of malaria infected blood to patient? ANSWER: This depends on the strain and burden of malaria parasites in the blood being transfused. Onset of malaria symptoms can be very rapid if infected red blood cells begin to rupture immediately, say within 24-48 hours, or conversely symptoms can be very … [Read more...]
Malaria Schizonts
QUESTION: What is the difference between schizont of Plasmodium vivax and P. falciparum? ANSWER: P. falciparum schizonts tend to fill up to about two-thirds of the host red blood cell, and contain 8-24 merozoites (see image below for development of schizont). However, schizonts of P. falciparum are rarely seen in peripheral blood; instead, multiple, smaller rings are the usual diagnostic … [Read more...]
Malaria Vaccine
QUESTION: Why is a vaccine against malaria seen as the main hope for the future? ANSWER: This answer is courtesy of a medical doctor assisting us with answering your questions. A vaccine is seen as the great hope for the future because the malaria parasite has an extraordinary talent for developing resistance very rapidly against each class of drug that is introduced into the arsenal … [Read more...]
Plasmodium gene map
QUESTION: Gene map of plasmodium ANSWER: This paper, which is freely accessible online, has published a genome-wide gene map for Plasmodium. … [Read more...]
Clinical malaria, taking chloroquine
QUESTION: Patient having malaria. Taking chloroquine. Then temp becomes normal but headache occurred. What to do? ANSWER: One of our collaborating medical doctors kindly assisted in answering this question. She suggests more clinical information is required; what type of malaria is the chloroquine being used for, for example? Also, the headache should not be from the drug, suggesting … [Read more...]