Imported malaria in adults: about a case of cerebral malaria

Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences

Zeineb Nfikha¹  Samar Ismaïl¹  Amal Ben Daly¹  Moncef Mokni¹  Amal Mosbahi¹  Chahnez Makni¹  Sarra Gharsallaoui¹  Mohamed Ben Dhiab¹  Selma Chaieb¹  Maher Jedidi¹  Sarra Ben Abderrahim¹  Akila Fathallah-Mili¹ 

[1]Ibn El Jazzar Faculty of Medicine, the University of Sousse

关键词: Malaria infection;    Cerebral malaria;    Forensic medicine;    Autopsy;    Postmortem;    Tunisia;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s41935-022-00279-1

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Abstract Background Malaria is the first parasitic infection endemic in the world caused by parasites species of Plasmodium. Cerebral malaria (CM) is a rapidly progressive and severe form of Plasmodium falciparum infection, characterized by a greater accumulation of red blood cells parasitized by Plasmodium falciparum in the brain. The diagnosis of malaria is usually made in living patients from a blood sample taken in the course of a fever on return from an endemic country, whereas CM, often associated with fatal outcomes even in treated subjects, is usually diagnosed at autopsy. Case presentation We present the case of a 36-year-old man who died a few days after returning from a business trip to the Ivory Coast. As a result of an unclear cause of death, a medicolegal autopsy was ordered. Autopsy findings revealed massive congestion and edema of the brain with no other macroscopic abnormalities at organ gross examination. Histology and laboratory tests were conducted revealing a Plasmodium falciparum infection, with numerous parasitized erythrocytes containing dots of hemozoin pigment (malaria pigment) in all examined brain sections and all other organs. Death was attributed to cerebral malaria with multiple organ failure. Conclusions This report summarizes several features for the diagnosis of malaria and how postmortem investigations, as well as histology and laboratory diagnosis, may lead to a retrospective diagnosis of a fatal complicated form with cerebral involvement.

【 授权许可】

Unknown