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Akafity G, Kumi N, Ashong J. Diagnosis and management of malaria in the intensive care unit. JOURNAL OF INTENSIVE MEDICINE 2024; 4:3-15. [PMID: 38263976 PMCID: PMC10800773 DOI: 10.1016/j.jointm.2023.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/02/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Malaria is responsible for approximately three-quarters of a million deaths in humans globally each year. Most of the morbidity and mortality reported are from Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, where the disease is endemic. In non-endemic areas, malaria is the most common cause of imported infection and is associated with significant mortality despite recent advancements and investments in elimination programs. Severe malaria often requires intensive care unit admission and can be complicated by cerebral malaria, respiratory distress, acute kidney injury, bleeding complications, and co-infection. Intensive care management includes prompt diagnosis and early initiation of effective antimalarial therapy, recognition of complications, and appropriate supportive care. However, the lack of diagnostic capacities due to limited advances in equipment, personnel, and infrastructure presents a challenge to the effective diagnosis and management of malaria. This article reviews the clinical classification, diagnosis, and management of malaria as relevant to critical care clinicians, highlighting the role of diagnostic capacity, treatment options, and supportive care.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Akafity
- Department of Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Nicholas Kumi
- Intensive Care Unit, Department of Critical Care and Anesthesia, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Joyce Ashong
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Cape Coast, Ghana
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Conroy AL, Datta D, Opoka RO, Batte A, Bangirana P, Gopinadhan A, Mellencamp KA, Akcan-Arikan A, Idro R, John CC. Cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers provide evidence for kidney-brain axis involvement in cerebral malaria pathogenesis. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1177242. [PMID: 37200952 PMCID: PMC10185839 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1177242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/14/2023] [Indexed: 05/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Cerebral malaria is one of the most severe manifestations of malaria and is a leading cause of acquired neurodisability in African children. Recent studies suggest acute kidney injury (AKI) is a risk factor for brain injury in cerebral malaria. The present study evaluates potential mechanisms of brain injury in cerebral malaria by evaluating changes in cerebrospinal fluid measures of brain injury with respect to severe malaria complications. Specifically, we attempt to delineate mechanisms of injury focusing on blood-brain-barrier integrity and acute metabolic changes that may underlie kidney-brain crosstalk in severe malaria. Methods We evaluated 30 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and brain injury in 168 Ugandan children aged 18 months to 12 years hospitalized with cerebral malaria. Eligible children were infected with Plasmodium falciparum and had unexplained coma. Acute kidney injury (AKI) on admission was defined using the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes criteria. We further evaluated blood-brain-barrier integrity and malaria retinopathy, and electrolyte and metabolic complications in serum. Results The mean age of children was 3.8 years (SD, 1.9) and 40.5% were female. The prevalence of AKI was 46.3% and multi-organ dysfunction was common with 76.2% of children having at least one organ system affected in addition to coma. AKI and elevated blood urea nitrogen, but not other measures of disease severity (severe coma, seizures, jaundice, acidosis), were associated with increases in CSF markers of impaired blood-brain-barrier function, neuronal injury (neuron-specific enolase, tau), excitatory neurotransmission (kynurenine), as well as altered nitric oxide bioavailability and oxidative stress (p < 0.05 after adjustment for multiple testing). Further evaluation of potential mechanisms suggested that AKI may mediate or be associated with CSF changes through blood-brain-barrier disruption (p = 0.0014), ischemic injury seen by indirect ophthalmoscopy (p < 0.05), altered osmolality (p = 0.0006) and through alterations in the amino acids transported into the brain. Conclusion In children with cerebral malaria, there is evidence of kidney-brain injury with multiple potential pathways identified. These changes were specific to the kidney and not observed in the context of other clinical complications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea L. Conroy
- Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Dibyadyuti Datta
- Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Robert O. Opoka
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
- Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
- Undergraduate Medical Education, The Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Anthony Batte
- Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
- Child Health and Development Centre, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Paul Bangirana
- Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Adnan Gopinadhan
- Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Kagan A. Mellencamp
- Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Ayse Akcan-Arikan
- Division of Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX, United States
- Division of Nephrology, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Richard Idro
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
- Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Chandy C. John
- Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Disease and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
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Namazzi R, Opoka R, Datta D, Bangirana P, Batte A, Berrens Z, Goings MJ, Schwaderer AL, Conroy AL, John CC. Acute Kidney Injury Interacts With Coma, Acidosis, and Impaired Perfusion to Significantly Increase Risk of Death in Children With Severe Malaria. Clin Infect Dis 2022; 75:1511-1519. [PMID: 35349633 PMCID: PMC9617576 DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciac229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mortality in severe malaria remains high in children treated with intravenous artesunate. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication of severe malaria, but the interactions between AKI and other complications on the risk of mortality in severe malaria are not well characterized. METHODS Between 2014 and 2017, 600 children aged 6-48 months to 4 years hospitalized with severe malaria were enrolled in a prospective clinical cohort study evaluating clinical predictors of mortality in children with severe malaria. RESULTS The mean age of children in this cohort was 2.1 years (standard deviation, 0.9 years) and 338 children (56.3%) were male. Mortality was 7.3%, and 52.3% of deaths occurred within 12 hours of admission. Coma, acidosis, impaired perfusion, AKI, elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and hyperkalemia were associated with increased mortality (all P < .001). AKI interacted with each risk factor to increase mortality (P < .001 for interaction). Children with clinical indications for dialysis (14.4% of all children) had an increased risk of death compared with those with no indications for dialysis (odds ratio, 6.56; 95% confidence interval, 3.41-12.59). CONCLUSIONS AKI interacts with coma, acidosis, or impaired perfusion to significantly increase the risk of death in severe malaria. Among children with AKI, those who have hyperkalemia or elevated BUN have a higher risk of death. A better understanding of the causes of these complications of severe malaria, and development and implementation of measures to prevent and treat them, such as dialysis, are needed to reduce mortality in severe malaria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Namazzi
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda,Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Robert Opoka
- Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda,Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Dibyadyuti Datta
- Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Paul Bangirana
- Global Health Uganda, Kampala, Uganda,Department of Psychiatry, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Anthony Batte
- Child Development Centre, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Zachary Berrens
- Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Michael J Goings
- Indiana University Center for Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Andrew L Schwaderer
- Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
| | - Andrea L Conroy
- Correspondence: A. L. Conroy, Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, 1044 W Walnut St, Indianapolis, IN 46202 ()
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