Malaria – Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Prevention

Overview

Malaria is an infection caused by single-celled parasites that enter the blood through the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes. The parasites in mosquitoes that cause malaria belong to the Plasmodium genus. Once an infected mosquito bites a human, the parasites multiply in the host’s liver before infecting and destroying red blood cells.

If Malaria isn’t diagnosed and treated promptly, it can be fatal. A single mosquito bite is all it takes for someone to become infected.

Let us look at the signs and symptoms of Malaria in the next section.

What are the signs and symptoms of Malaria?

The signs and symptoms of Malaria can develop as quickly as seven days after an infected mosquito bite you.

Typically, the time between being infected and when symptoms start (incubation period) is 7 to 18 days, depending on the specific parasite you’re infected with. However, it can take up to a year for symptoms to develop in some cases.

The initial symptoms of malaria are flu-like and include:

• High Fever
• Chills
• Profuse Sweating
• Headaches
• Muscle Ache and Fatigue
• Nausea and Vomiting
• Chest or Abdominal Pain

With some types of malaria, the symptoms occur in 48-hour cycles. During these cycles, you feel cold at first with shivering. You then develop a high temperature, accompanied by severe sweating and fatigue. 

In some cases, malaria can progress and affect vital body organs. Symptoms of severe malaria include:

• Severe anemia
• Blood in the urine
• Changes in blood clotting
• Impaired consciousness
• High acidity in the blood and body fluids
• Seizures
• Coma

Severe malaria is a life threatening medical emergency.

What are the complications of Malaria?

Malaria can be fatal and can result in serious complications such as

• Cerebral malaria: Swelling of the brain or brain damage may occur if parasite filled blood cells block small blood vessels in the brain. It can also cause fits (seizures) or coma.
• Breathing problems: Accumulated fluid in the lungs can make it difficult to breathe.
• Organ failure: Malaria can cause the kidneys or liver to fail, or rupture the spleen
• Anemia: The malaria parasite’s destruction of red blood cells can cause severe anemia. Anemia is a condition where the red blood cells cannot carry enough oxygen to the body’s muscles and organs, leaving you feeling tired and weak.

Low blood sugar: Severe forms of malaria itself can cause low blood sugar