Abstract
BackgroundThe hematological changes following the initial drug regimen has been poorly understood in Thailand. This study was designed to determine the prevalence of malaria parasite recurrence and hematological alteration of patients during the initial drug regimen.MethodsA retrospective study was conducted at Phop Phra Hospital, Tak Province, located in northwestern Thailand. All data from patients who were diagnosed with Plasmodium spp. infection – including types of Plasmodium spp., clinical characteristics, and hematological parameters – were retrieved and analyzed.ResultsThe results demonstrated that during years 2012–2018, 95 out of 971 patients (9.78%) were infected with malaria two or more times. The gender, nationality, symptom of headache, type of Plasmodium spp., and career of each patient were associated with recurrence (P-value< 0.05). Among patients treated with malarial drug, the leukocyte count and red cell distribution width (RDW) were significantly changed when compared to untreated patients with recurrence (P-value< 0.05).ConclusionThis study indicated the high prevalence of malarial recurrence in Tak Province, Western Thailand, and its relationship to certain characteristics of individuals. Patients who were treated with antimalarial drugs exhibited leukocyte and RDW changes following the initial drug regimen. This data could be useful for prompt detection, treatment, and prevention of malarial recurrence in endemic areas of Thailand.
Highlights
The hematological changes following the initial drug regimen has been poorly understood in Thailand
In Africa, children suffered from malarial attacks every 4 to 6 weeks for many years, which has resulted in the spread of chloroquine resistance, the increase in the use of more toxic alternative drugs, and the exposure of other people living in the same endemic area to the side effects of antimalarial drugs [12, 13]
Countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) played a role in regional malaria elimination which resulted in reducing the number of malarial cases, several malarial cases were still endemic among remote areas along international borders [11]
Summary
The hematological changes following the initial drug regimen has been poorly understood in Thailand. Kotepui et al BMC Public Health (2019) 19:1294 areas of malaria with high infection rates for consecutive years, such as Tak Province [11] These people might get malarial infection more than one time per season. A previous study conducted among 457 Thai children indicated that low mean scores in mathematics and Thai language were in relation to higher numbers of malarial attacks [19]. It is very important for the public health sector to implement strategies for early diagnosis, prompt treatment, vector control, and even behavioral changes to reduce incidences of malaria among the population living in endemic areas. Another study indicated a decline in absolute neutrophil counts after amodiaquine, sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine, and amodiaquine-sulfadoxine/ pyrimethamine combined were administered [21, 22]
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