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Cerebral Malaria: Hear before Discharge!

Ambarish Joshi1, Nitesh Gupta1, Pranav Ish1

  • 1Department of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.

Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine : Peer-Reviewed, Official Publication of Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine
|May 22, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Cerebral malaria can cause hearing loss, even after patients seem to recover. Early hearing screening before discharge is crucial for detecting and managing this neurological complication.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Otolaryngology

Background:

  • Cerebral malaria is a severe neurological complication of Plasmodium falciparum infection.
  • Neurological sequelae, including auditory deficits, can occur post-malaria.
  • Hearing impairment may be an underdiagnosed complication in malaria survivors.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the incidence of hearing impairment in patients recovering from cerebral malaria.
  • To emphasize the importance of audiological assessment before discharge in cerebral malaria cases.
  • To highlight potential long-term neurological deficits following severe malaria.

Main Methods:

  • Case review of patients diagnosed with cerebral malaria.
  • Audiological evaluation including pure-tone audiometry and speech audiometry.
  • Clinical assessment for neurological deficits prior to discharge.

Main Results:

  • A significant proportion of patients exhibited hearing impairment, ranging from mild to severe.
  • Some patients with normal neurological examination showed audiological abnormalities.
  • Hearing deficits were detected even in patients who had seemingly recovered from cerebral malaria.

Conclusions:

  • Hearing impairment is a common and potentially overlooked complication of cerebral malaria.
  • Pre-discharge audiological screening is essential for early detection and intervention.
  • Prompt management of auditory deficits can improve patient outcomes and quality of life.

Keywords:
ChildrenIntensive careMechanical ventilationSurvival to discharge

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