Table of contents:
- Definition
- What is malaria?
- How common is this disease?
- Type
- What are the types of malaria?
- 1. Common malaria
- 2. Severe malaria
- Signs & symptoms
- What are the signs and symptoms of malaria?
- When to go to the doctor
- Cause
- What causes malaria?
- Risk factors
- What factors can increase my risk of getting malaria?
- 1. Age
- 2. Living or visiting tropical climates
- 3. Located in an area with minimal health facilities
- Diagnosis and treatment
- How to diagnose malaria?
- How to treat this disease?
- 1. Common malaria (without complications)
- 2.Severe malaria (with complications)
- Prevention
- What are some lifestyle changes or home remedies that can prevent malaria?
Definition
What is malaria?
Malaria is a serious and dangerous disease caused by a parasitic infection Plasmodium.
Generally, these parasites are transmitted through mosquito bites, especially by Anopheles mosquitoes. One type of parasite Plasmodium the most common causes of this disease are P. falciparum.
Here are 5 types of parasites Plasmodium that triggers this disease:
- Plasmodium falciparum
- Plasmodium vivax
- Plasmodium ovale
- Plasmodium malariae
- Plasmodium knowlesi
If the Anopheles mosquito is infected by Plasmodium and bite you, they can be passed on and released into your bloodstream. Parasites will develop in your liver, and within a few days will start attacking your red blood cells.
When you become infected, the signs and symptoms of this disease will start to appear after 10 days to 4 weeks. However, sometimes symptoms can also appear 7 days after you are infected. The most common symptoms are fever, headache and vomiting.
If not treated immediately, the complications that may arise with this disease are anemia and low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). In more serious cases, sufferers can experience cerebral malaria, in which blood vessels to the brain become blocked and risk causing death.
How common is this disease?
Malaria is a disease that is more commonly found in tropical and subtropical climates. Based on data from the World Health Foundation (WHO), it is estimated that there were 219 million cases occurring in 87 countries in 2017.
In the same year, the death rate from malaria was quite high, namely around 435,000 people. The regions with the most cases of incidence are countries in Africa, Southeast Asia, the East Mediterranean and the West Pacific.
According to the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia, there are around 10.7 million Indonesians living in areas prone to malaria, such as Papua, West Papua and NTT. However, this figure continues to decline in line with the implementation of the Indonesia malaria-free program in 2030.
Children under 5 years are the age group most susceptible to this disease. In 2017, as many as 61% (266,000) of all cases of death due to this disease were children.
Although malaria is a disease that is quite fatal, you can overcome it by controlling the risk factors that exist. To find out more information about malaria, you can consult a doctor.
Type
What are the types of malaria?
Broadly speaking, malaria can be divided into 2, namely common and severe. Severe disease is usually a complication of the usual type. The following is a further explanation of each type of malaria:
1. Common malaria
Malaria is a disease that usually does not cause serious complications and only causes the main symptoms because no vital organs are affected.
The symptoms that appear generally last for 6-10 hours, then will recur every 2 days.
2. Severe malaria
This type is a complication of the usual type that is not treated immediately. Generally, the cause of this condition is parasites P. falciparum, although it does not rule out Plasmodium other types can also cause complications.
In this type, a process called sequestration occurs, which is when the blood clots and makes a blockage in the blood vessels.
If the blood vessels in the brain are blocked by these blood clots, there may be effects in the form of strokes, seizures, acidosis (increased levels of acid in the body), and severe anemia.
In more severe conditions, sufferers have the potential to experience cerebral malaria, which is when infection P. falciparum has affected the brain. This condition can occur less than 2 weeks after the first bite of a mosquito, and begins with a fever for 2-7 days.
Apart from the severity, the types of malaria can also be divided based on the parasite that causes them:
- Malaria ovale or light tertiana: caused by P. ovale
- Tropical malaria: caused by P. falciparum
- Malaria quartana: caused by P. malariae
- Tertiana malaria: caused by P. vivax
Signs & symptoms
What are the signs and symptoms of malaria?
In most people, signs and symptoms of malaria appear about 10 days to 4 weeks after first becoming infected.
However, there are also cases where sufferers begin to feel symptoms 7 days after being bitten by a mosquito, or even 1 year later.
Common signs and symptoms of malaria are:
- Moderate to severe shivering
- High fever
- The body is tired
- Sweating a lot
- Headache
- Nausea accompanied by vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Muscle ache
Some of the other symptoms or signs may not be listed above. If you feel anxious about these symptoms, consult your doctor immediately.
When to go to the doctor
Call your doctor if you have:
- High fever after visiting an area with a high risk of malaria
- A high fever several weeks, months, or a year has passed after you returned from an area with a high risk of malaria.
If you have any of the above signs or symptoms or have any questions, please consult your doctor.
To get the most appropriate treatment and according to your health condition, check any symptoms you are experiencing to the doctor or the nearest health service center.
Cause
What causes malaria?
As previously explained, malaria is a parasitic infectious disease Plasmodium. Most sufferers are infected by parasites due to the bite of the female Anopheles mosquito. Only the Anopheles mosquito can transmit the parasite Plasmodium.
Usually, the parasites are carried when mosquitoes suck the blood of people with malaria. Then, when the mosquito sucks the blood of another person, the parasite can enter that person's body.
Because these parasites are commonly found in red blood cells, they can also be transmitted through blood transfusions, organ transplant procedures, or unsterile needles and infusions.
In addition, this disease may also be transmitted from mother to baby who is in her womb (congenital malaria).
Moment of parasites Plasmodium get into your bloodstream, the parasites will move towards the liver. In the liver, the parasites will grow and develop for several days. However, it is usually a type parasite P. vivax and P. ovale will "fall asleep" for several months or years in the human body.
When they grow up, the parasites begin to infect the sufferer's red blood cells. It is at this time that the signs and symptoms of malaria will appear.
Risk factors
What factors can increase my risk of getting malaria?
Malaria is a disease that can occur in almost anyone, regardless of age and racial group. However, there are several factors that can increase a person's risk of contracting malaria.
It is important for you to know that having one or more risk factors does not mean that you will definitely be exposed to a disease or health condition. A risk factor is simply a condition that increases your chances of getting the disease.
In rare cases, it is possible for a person to suffer from certain diseases or health conditions without any risk factors.
The following are risk factors that can trigger you to contract malaria:
1. Age
Although this disease can occur in all age groups, cases of occurrence are mostly found in children, especially those under 5 years of age.
2. Living or visiting tropical climates
This disease is still very common in some tropical climates, such as countries in Africa and Southeast Asia. If you travel or live in these areas, your risk of getting infected is quite high.
3. Located in an area with minimal health facilities
Living in developing countries with minimal health facilities can also increase your chances of contracting parasites Plasmodium.
In addition, high poverty and lack of access to education also affect the quality of a country's health, so that these things affect the mortality rate from this disease.
Diagnosis and treatment
The information described is not a substitute for medical advice. ALWAYS consult your doctor.
How to diagnose malaria?
In the process of diagnosis, your doctor may review your medical history and ask if you have recently visited an area with an outbreak of this disease.
In addition, the doctor will check for complaints such as fever, chills, vomiting, diarrhea, and other symptoms. The examination will be continued by checking for swelling of the spleen (splenomegaly) or liver (hepatomegaly).
Then, the doctor will ask you to undergo additional tests, such as blood tests to determine the presence of parasites, as well as the type of parasite Plasmodium that infects your red blood cells.
The following are the types of blood tests that are usually done:
- Rapid diagnostic test (rapid diagnostic test)
- Peripheral blood smear (blood smear).
- Complete blood count test (complete blood count)
How to treat this disease?
The treatment for malaria that is recommended by the Indonesian Doctors Association and WHO is the provision of artemisinin-based therapy (ACT). Infection Plasmodium Common (uncomplicated) and severe (with complications) are conditions that are treated with different dosages and drug combinations.
1. Common malaria (without complications)
To treat infections caused by P. falciparum and P. vivax, the doctor will give ACT combined with primaquine.
Primquine dose for infection P. falciparum is 0.25 mg / kg, and is only given on the first day. Meanwhile, infection P. vivax given a dose of 0.25 mg / kg for 14 days.
In cases of relapsing vivax malaria, the doctor will give ACT with the same dose, but combined with primaquine 0.5 mg / kgBW / day.
On infection P. ovale, the ACT drug given was added with primaquine for 14 days. As for the infection P. malariae, the patient was given ACT in a dose once a day for 3 days. Patients with infections P. malariae not given primaquine.
Treatment of malaria in pregnant women is not much different from treatment in ordinary adults. However, pregnant women should not be given primaquine.
2.Severe malaria (with complications)
Patients with this condition must receive intensive care at the nearest hospital or health center.
The patient will be given an intravenous artesunate intravenously. If not available, the medical team will provide quinine drip.
Prevention
What are some lifestyle changes or home remedies that can prevent malaria?
Lifestyle changes and home methods below are believed to help prevent malaria:
- Spraying the walls of the house with insecticides can kill adult mosquitoes that enter the house.
- Keeping the house clean, dry and hygienic.
- Sleep under a mosquito net.
- Cover the skin by wearing long pants and long sleeves, or closed clothing, especially when an outbreak is spreading in your area.
- If you have this disease, you must eat liquid food, only then in the recovery period, you can eat green vegetables and fruits.
- Do not allow standing water near your home.
If you have any questions, consult your doctor to better understand the best solution for you.
