Delayed Malaria Recrudescence and Relapse in the Setting of COVID-19

It is unknown whether COVID-19 can trigger malaria recrudescence or relapse. Although Plasmodium falciparum recrudescence occurring years after infection is extremely rare, delayed Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium ovale relapse from the latent hypnozoite stage is well described. We report a case of a...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Katherine Reifler, Sonja Kytomaa, Nancy S. Miller, Daniel Bourque
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American College of Physicians 2023-05-01
Series:Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases
Online Access:https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2022.1034
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Summary:It is unknown whether COVID-19 can trigger malaria recrudescence or relapse. Although Plasmodium falciparum recrudescence occurring years after infection is extremely rare, delayed Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium ovale relapse from the latent hypnozoite stage is well described. We report a case of acute P falciparum and P ovale co-infection that occurred 2 weeks after COVID-19 in an otherwise immunocompetent patient living in a malaria nonendemic country and without exposure to malaria in the preceding 5 years. This case highlights a potential mechanism by which COVID-19–associated immune depletion and/or dysregulation may trigger a delayed presentation of malaria.
ISSN:2767-7664