Malaria - Curious

[237SJ]

I have heard that when somebody contracts malaria, it can make reappearances in later years. If someone had malaria years ago and gets some other infection in later life, could it bring back some of the malaria symptoms?

[jno]

it can recur, and I don't think it needs anything in particular to prompt the recurrence

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ask-the-expert/infections/a5415/can-malaria-recur/

There were some good answers from Peter Pedant on malaria on another thread somewhere, I think

[zakajhan]

bb rother in law served Burma ww2 had symptons on and off all his life

[237SJ]

I know it can recur but I wondered if another infection such as UTI could trigger symptoms.

[Sqad]

Certain types of malaria can lie dormant in the body, particularly the liver for years if the initial treatment is poorly administered e.g wrong dose, wrong drug.

I do not know what awakens the dormant organism but i do not think that other infections are an instigating factor.

[jno]

this lists causes of recurrence - see the post halfway down at March 6, 2012 at 9:03 am

http://www.malaria.com/overview/malaria-symptoms-causes

(other infection doesn't seem to be one of them)

[237SJ]

Thanks for the replies. jno - there is a lot to read there but it is quite interesting so will have a read when I have time.

[rsvp]

I had very bad malaria in Malawi - absolutely horrendous but it was not a recurring strain and I've never had a problem from it since and to my knowledge it has never exacerbated any other illness. My son has had three or four bouts ( which I know of!!!) and been hospitalised three times. He does however, travel very regularly all over central and southern Africa.

[Peter Pedant]

did anyone call and can I help ?

sqad as part of his medical course will have done the malarial parasite in the section of his course called 'odds and sads' - thinking What The Funicular....why do I have to learn this ?

the person who lately ( 1935) described the liver cycle in malaria was Gordon Hamilton Fairleys dad - Neil ( Gordon was the one blown up by the IRA bomb in 1976 )

and it all depends on whether there is a hepatic cycle ( rather than hepatic first phase ) which I recollect - falciparum ( bad, really bad ) doesnt and the rest may do. Vivax does. and if you use 4-amino quinolines then you dont get the liver and if you do use 8 aminoquinolines in treatment then you get a radical cure

and since this has been known for nigh on eighty years you should not get recurrence

but you do ... vivax hypnozoites are, as in jno's ref - are still a problem

goggle vivax malaria hypnozoites for many many happy hours of browsing. Here is one

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1473309913700951

there is also a historical look back on the internet - sorry had slow responses this evg - where they went thro Squaddies medical records from Palestine ( golly 1948 !) to see what occurred. [ really dont researchers have ANYTHING better to do ? ]

I have to say I am amazed to read this as I thought everyone knew that a radical cure was required ( with an 8 amino quinoline ) for anything other than falciparum. ho hum interesting question - one lives and learns

[237SJ]

Thanks Peter. Person with visible shakes (almost like the DTs) frequent painful urination (urine normal) so probably UTI. But - had malaria 20 years ago and suffering painful joints, muscles and torso, visibly grimacing as the waves of pain/tremors come (I could feel them when I took his pulse). High pulse (for him) dropping BP and rising temperature to end of scale on Feverscan. Took Paracetamol, and ended up on a drip. Seemed to improve. As I said, probably UTI but the joint and muscle pain is niggling me.

[Hypognosis]

@all

Have we had a thread, about whether we get/have malarial mosquitos in the UK, yet?

In my own back garden, East Sussex, maybe 10 years ago, a shallow container had filled with rainwater and had larvae in it, all clinging to the surface by their breathing tubes and I wondered if they were mozzies?

[jno]

we occasionally get mosquitoes from the semi-abandoned swimming pool next door. There'd have to be a fair dollop of climate change before they became malarial, I would have thought.