Malaria Disease

Malaria Disease

Malaria is an infectious disease caused by a protozoan parasite which is Plasmodium class, where the process is transmitted through the bite of Anopheles mosquito. Protozoan parasites of this type spread in many tropical regions, for example in the Americas, Asia and Africa.

There are four types of plasmodium parasites are able to infect humans, but which are often encountered in cases of malaria are Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax. Others are Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium malariae.

Signs and symptoms of malaria disease

The period of bud / incubation of this disease can be a few days to several months later appeared before the signs and symptoms complained of by patients such as fever, chills, shooting pain or joint pain, sometimes up to vomit, looked pale / anemis, enlarged liver and spleen, urine looks cloudy / thick because they contain hemoglobin (hemoglobinuria), felt tingling in the skin and having spasms.

However, it is revealed classic signs of feeling a sudden chill, followed by stiffness and then the appearance of fever and sweating a lot after 4 to 6 hours later, this takes place every two days. Among this period, the patient may feel healthy as before. At the age of the children malaria attack can cause strange symptoms, such as showing movement / posture as a result of abnormal brain cavity pressure. Even more seriously can lead to brain damage.

Classification of Disease Manifestation of Malaria

There are several forms of malaria disease manifestations, among others:
- Tertiana Malaria, caused by Plasmodium vivax, in which patients feel the fever appears every third day.
- Quartana Malaria, caused by Plasmodium malariae, the patient felt a fever every fourth day.
- Cerebral malaria, caused by Plasmodium falciparum, patients experience irregular fever with symptoms terserangnya part of the brain, even drifting into a sudden coma and death.
- Pernicious malaria, caused by Plasmodium vivax, symptoms can arise very suddenly, like a stroke, coma accompanied by symptoms of severe malaria.

Enforcing Malaria Diagnosis

With the signs and symptoms complained of and seen by the health team, it will be soon conducted laboratory tests (especially blood tests) to determine the cause and diagnosis to be given to patients.

Malaria Treatment

Based on the examination, either directly from the complaints that arise as well as more focused on results laboratium then the doctor will give you some medicine to patients. Among them is the administration of drugs to lower fever such as paracetamol, vitamins to increase endurance in an attempt to help the healing.

While the antimalarial drug Chloroquine is usually used is because the price is cheap and so far proven effective as a cure for malaria in the world. But there are some patients who are resistant to the granting of Chloroquine, so some doctors will give others like Artesunate-Sulfadoxine/pyrimethamine antimalarial, artesunate-amodiaquine, Artesunat-piperquine, artemether-lumefantrine, and Dihidroartemisinin-piperquine.

Malaria Prevention

Prevention of malaria can be done with cleaning Nest Mosquito (PSN), trying to avoid mosquito bites, or the prevention efforts by the administration of drugs Chloroquine when visiting malaria endemic areas.