Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 19, 2026
07:14
Ookluc: A Plasmodium berghei Line for Identifying Transmission-blocking Compounds
Published on: July 11, 2025
Plasmodium vivax malaria: an unusual presentation
Prasad Kasliwal1, Manimala S Rao, Rash Kujur
1Department of Critical Care, Yashoda Hospital, Somajiguda, Hyderabad, India.
Summary
Severe Plasmodium vivax malaria can cause acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a rare pulmonary complication. This case highlights successful treatment with anti-malarial therapy and non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV).
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Pulmonology
- Tropical Medicine
Background:
- Severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria is known for systemic complications like acute renal failure, DIC, ARDS, hypoglycemia, coma, and seizures.
- Pulmonary damage and complications are rare in Plasmodium vivax malaria.
Observation:
- A 42-year-old male from a malaria-endemic region presented with ARDS.
- Plasmodium vivax malaria was diagnosed using a Plasmodium LDH immunochromatographic assay.
- A negative PfHRP2 assay excluded Plasmodium falciparum malaria.
Findings:
- The patient recovered after receiving specific anti-malarial treatment and intensive supportive care.
- Non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) was utilized for ARDS management.
- The use of NIPPV in this case of vivax-malaria-related ARDS was associated with a positive outcome.
Implications:
- This case expands the understanding of potential severe manifestations of Plasmodium vivax malaria.
- It underscores the importance of considering Plasmodium vivax in differential diagnoses for ARDS in endemic areas.
- The successful use of NIPPV suggests its potential role in managing vivax-malaria-induced ARDS.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Malaria
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...
00:58Symbiosis
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...
01:28Toxoplasmosis
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...
01:27Diversity of Protists II
Alveolates are a group of organisms recognized by the presence of alveoli, which are cytoplasmic sacs located beneath the cell membrane. While their function remains uncertain, alveoli may help regulate water balance by controlling how much water enters and leaves the cell. In dinoflagellates, these structures may serve as armor plates. There are three major types of alveolates: ciliates, which move using cilia; dinoflagellates, which use flagella for movement; and apicomplexans, which are...
01:12Giardiasis
Giardiasis is a globally prevalent intestinal infection caused by the protozoan parasite Giardia duodenalis (also known as G. lamblia or G. intestinalis). This flagellated protozoan is the most frequently identified intestinal parasite in the United States and worldwide. Transmission primarily occurs via the fecal-oral route, with infection arising from ingestion of water or food contaminated with cysts. Individuals in low-resource settings, international travelers, outdoor enthusiasts, daycare...
01:30Leishmaniasis
Leishmaniasis is a protozoal disease caused by species of the genus Leishmania and transmitted through the bite of infected female sandflies. The parasite exists in two principal morphological forms during its life cycle. A sandfly acquires intracellular amastigotes from an infected reservoir host, such as a dog. Within the sandfly, these forms differentiate into motile, flagellated promastigotes. During a subsequent blood meal, promastigotes are injected into the human host, where they...