Imported malaria in the Infectious Diseases Hospital of Iaşi: epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 28 consecutive cases

Abstract

Results The mean annual number of cases was 1.75. The patients were aged between 18 and 60 years (mean age 32.1 years). 96.7% were males. The most frequent country of origin was Turkey (57.1%), followed by Angola (17.8%), China (7.1) and India, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Portugal, Equatorial Guinea – 3.6% of cases. The length of stay in the endemic country was in 82.1% of cases of more than one month. Only 21.4% of patients had received chemoprophylaxis. Fever higher than 39°C was present in all cases. Chills, myalgia, jaundice, vomiting and sometimes neurological symptoms were also present. 25% were severe forms requiring intensive care. Plasmodium vivax was responsible for 64.3% of cases, P falciparum – 28.6%, P malariae and P ovale – 3.6%. 75% of cases had anemia, 42.8% thrombocytopenia, 78.6% elevated ESR, and 28.6% renal failure. The treatment was started as soon as the diagnosis was established, 4.38 days (mean) after the disease onset. The mean hospitalization time was 11.9 days. 32.1% of patients had to be transferred to the Clinical Hospital of Infectious and Tropical Diseases “Dr. Victor Babes”, Bucharest, due to disease’s severity, lack of medication or response to the initial anti-malarial regimen. No deaths were recorded.