Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 17, 2026

Methods to Investigate the Regulatory Role of Small RNAs and Ribosomal Occupancy of Plasmodium falciparum
10:22

Methods to Investigate the Regulatory Role of Small RNAs and Ribosomal Occupancy of Plasmodium falciparum

Published on: December 4, 2015

Increasing burden of childhood severe malaria in a Nigerian tertiary hospital: implication for control

Adebola Emmanuel Orimadegun1, Olufunmi Fawole, James Okorie Okereke

  • 1Department of Paediatrics, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. beorimadegun@yahoo.com

Journal of Tropical Pediatrics
|February 9, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Severe malaria significantly impacts Nigerian children, especially those under five, with increasing hospitalizations and a high fatality rate. Severe malarial anemia is a major concern, necessitating a review of current malaria control strategies.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Pediatrics
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Malaria is a significant public health issue in Nigeria, disproportionately affecting child and maternal health.
  • The burden of severe malaria among Nigerian children has been underreported, hindering effective strategy evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To document the hospital burden of severe malaria in children admitted to the University College Hospital, Ibadan.
  • To inform the impact and health implications of current malaria control strategies in Nigeria.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective review of 6-year case records (2000-2005) of children admitted to the emergency ward.
  • Severe malaria cases defined by confirmed parasitaemia (blood film microscopy) and WHO criteria.

Main Results:

  • Severe malaria accounted for 11.3% of pediatric admissions, with 89.1% in children under five.
  • The yearly proportional morbidity rate increased significantly from 2000 to 2004 (P < 0.001).
  • Severe malarial anemia was more common than cerebral malaria and associated with high mortality (9.6% case fatality rate).

Conclusions:

  • There is an increasing trend in severe malaria morbidity among hospitalized Nigerian children.
  • Factors associated with malaria deaths include wasting, young age, hypoglycemia, and respiratory distress.
  • Current malaria control strategies in Nigeria may require review due to the persistent high burden of severe malaria.

More Related Videos

Standard Membrane Feeding Assay for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum Infection in Anopheles Mosquito Vectors05:28

Standard Membrane Feeding Assay for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum Infection in Anopheles Mosquito Vectors

Published on: May 12, 2022

Phenotypic Analysis of Rodent Malaria Parasite Asexual and Sexual Blood Stages and Mosquito Stages08:23

Phenotypic Analysis of Rodent Malaria Parasite Asexual and Sexual Blood Stages and Mosquito Stages

Published on: May 30, 2019

Related Concept Videos

Malaria01:29

Malaria

Malaria pathogenesis in humans reflects a delicate interplay between parasite biology and host response. Clinical illness reflects a host’s immune response to the parasite’s asexual replication cycle, which is often asymptomatic in individuals with partial immunity. From the parasite's perspective, transmission between mosquito and human with minimal host pathology is evolutionarily advantageous. Among the six Plasmodium species infecting humans, P. falciparum and P. vivax dominate in global...
Yellow Fever01:18

Yellow Fever

Yellow fever is a viral hemorrhagic disease caused by the yellow fever virus (YFV), a member of the Flaviviridae family. It is transmitted primarily by Aedes and Haemagogus mosquitoes in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa and South America. After transmission through a mosquito bite, the virus initially replicates in skin-resident immune cells such as dendritic cells and macrophages. These cells then migrate to the lymph nodes, where viral replication increases, eventually leading to...
Amebiasis01:28

Amebiasis

Entamoeba histolytica, a protozoan parasite, is responsible for intestinal and extraintestinal amebiasis. Though a significant proportion of infections remain asymptomatic, approximately 50 million individuals annually are estimated to present with clinical disease, resulting in up to 100,000 deaths globally. The disease burden is disproportionately high in regions with lower socioeconomic status, such as parts of India, Africa, Mexico, and Latin America.Etiology and TransmissionThe infective...
Symbiosis00:58

Symbiosis

Symbiotic relationships are long-term, close interactions between individuals of different species that affect the distribution and abundance of those species. When a relationship is beneficial to both species, this is called mutualism. When the relationship is beneficial to one species but neither beneficial nor harmful to the other species, this is called commensalism. When one organism is harmed to benefit another, the relationship is known as parasitism. These types of relationships often...
Bacterial Meningitis I: Introduction01:22

Bacterial Meningitis I: Introduction

Bacterial meningitis is a severe, life-threatening inflammation of the meninges, particularly the pia mater and arachnoid mater, affecting the subarachnoid space, ventricles, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). If untreated, it can lead to significant neurological complications or death.Causative AgentsCommon pathogens vary with age and immune status. In adults, major organisms include Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis, and Haemophilus influenzae. Streptococcus agalactiae (group B...
Toxoplasmosis01:28

Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis, a zoonotic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, poses significant public health challenges globally due to its high seroprevalence and varied clinical manifestations. As an obligate intracellular parasite, T. gondii can infect all warm-blooded vertebrates, but felids are its only definitive hosts, shedding unsporulated oocysts into the environment. Humans typically acquire the infection through ingestion of tissue cysts in undercooked meat or oocysts from...