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Nandish P, B. M. S, N. SN, Shankar G, Tripathi PK, Kashyap H, Jain A, Anvikar A, Chalageri VH. Exploring the hidden mental health consequences of malaria beyond the fever. Front Hum Neurosci 2024; 18:1432441. [PMID: 39091401 PMCID: PMC11291252 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2024.1432441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2024] [Accepted: 06/25/2024] [Indexed: 08/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Malaria morbidity has various presentations and the focus now shifts to uncommon signs and symptoms of malaria infection such as cognitive impairment to address the morbidity when the mortality declines. About 50% of children admitted to hospitals due to malaria experience neurological complications due to factors like low blood sugar, inflammation, elevated pressure, decreased oxygen levels, and excitotoxicity. Malaria during pregnancy negatively also impacts children's cognitive, behavioral, and executive function leading to neurodevelopmental delay due to increased susceptibility which can significantly affect maternal and child health, leading to higher rates of underestimated factors like anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Despite having the world's second-largest tribal population, India's indigenous and tribal communities and their mental health are less explored and less understood. Western psychological tools and neurocognitive assessment tools are not universally applicable, thus necessitating the development of tailored tools to investigate psychological or neurocognitive impairment. This paper has illuminated the hidden mental health consequences of malaria infection, emphasizing the prevalence, nature, and implications of psychological distress among affected individuals. The findings underscore the importance of recognizing and addressing these psychological consequences in the holistic management and prevention of malaria and its mental health consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prerana Nandish
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
| | - Shrinivasa B. M.
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
| | - Sujith Nath N.
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
| | - G. Shankar
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
| | - Praveen Kumar Tripathi
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
| | - Himani Kashyap
- Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India
| | - Animesh Jain
- Department of Community Medicine, Kasturba Medical College Mangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Karnataka, Manipal, India
| | - Anup Anvikar
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Dwarka, New Delhi, India
| | - Vani H. Chalageri
- Indian Council of Medical Research, National Institute of Malaria Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
- Associate Professor, The Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, AcSIR, India
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Weckman AM, Conroy AL, Madanitsa M, Gnaneswaran B, McDonald CR, Kalilani-Phiri L, Chandna J, Ali D, Mwapasa V, Khairallah C, Thwai KL, Meshnick SR, Taylor SM, ter Kuile FO, Kain KC, Gladstone M. Neurocognitive outcomes in Malawian children exposed to malaria during pregnancy: An observational birth cohort study. PLoS Med 2021; 18:e1003701. [PMID: 34582452 PMCID: PMC8478258 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1003701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Annually 125 million pregnancies are at risk of malaria infection. However, the impact of exposure to malaria in pregnancy on neurodevelopment in children is not well understood. We hypothesized that malaria in pregnancy and associated maternal immune activation result in neurodevelopmental delay in exposed offspring. METHODS AND FINDINGS Between April 2014 and April 2015, we followed 421 Malawian mother-baby dyads (median [IQR] maternal age: 21 [19, 28] years) who were previously enrolled (median [IQR] gestational age at enrollment: 19.7 [17.9, 22.1] weeks) in a randomized controlled malaria prevention trial with 5 or 6 scheduled assessments of antenatal malaria infection by PCR. Children were evaluated at 12, 18, and/or 24 months of age with cognitive tests previously validated in Malawi: the Malawi Developmental Assessment Tool (MDAT) and the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (MCAB-CDI). We assessed the impact of antenatal malaria (n [%] positive: 240 [57.3]), placental malaria (n [%] positive: 112 [29.6]), and maternal immune activation on neurocognitive development in children. Linear mixed-effects analysis showed that children exposed to antenatal malaria between 33 and 37 weeks gestation had delayed language development across the 2-year follow-up, as measured by MCAB-CDI (adjusted beta estimate [95% CI], -7.53 [-13.04, -2.02], p = 0.008). Maternal immune activation, characterized by increased maternal sTNFRII concentration, between 33 and 37 weeks was associated with lower MCAB-CDI language score (adjusted beta estimate [95% CI], -8.57 [-13.09, -4.06], p < 0.001). Main limitations of this study include a relatively short length of follow-up and a potential for residual confounding that is characteristic of observational studies. CONCLUSIONS This mother-baby cohort presents evidence of a relationship between malaria in pregnancy and neurodevelopmental delay in offspring. Malaria in pregnancy may be a modifiable risk factor for neurodevelopmental injury independent of birth weight or prematurity. Successful interventions to prevent malaria during pregnancy may reduce the risk of neurocognitive delay in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea M. Weckman
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- SAR Laboratories, Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Andrea L. Conroy
- Department of Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America
| | - Mwayiwawo Madanitsa
- College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi
- Academy of Medical Sciences, Malawi University of Science and Technology, Thyolo, Malawi
| | - Bruno Gnaneswaran
- Women and Children’s Health, Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Chloe R. McDonald
- Grand Challenges Canada, Toronto General Hospital, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Jaya Chandna
- Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Doreen Ali
- Department of Preventive Health Services, Ministry of Health, Lilongwe, Malawi
| | - Victor Mwapasa
- College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi
| | - Carole Khairallah
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Kyaw Lay Thwai
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Steven R. Meshnick
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Steve M. Taylor
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Feiko O. ter Kuile
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Kevin C. Kain
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- SAR Laboratories, Sandra Rotman Centre for Global Health, Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Tropical Disease Unit, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Melissa Gladstone
- Women and Children’s Health, Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
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Gómez A, Pernía B, Zamora L, Spencer LM. Effect of Plasmodium berghei infection on fetuses in pregnant BALB/c mice at two periods of pregnancy. BIONATURA 2021. [DOI: 10.21931/rb/2021.06.02.25] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Malaria is a disease caused by a protozoan of the genus Plasmodium in humans and vertebrates. It has a high morbidity and mortality rate, especially in pregnant women living in countries with high transmission rates. Murine models have been an excellent tool to evaluate the effects of malarial infection in the mother-fetus relationship. For this reason, we evaluated the effect of malarial infection on fetal development at the beginning and middle of the gestational period in BALB/c mice infected with Plasmodium berghei ANKA. Our results show that malarial infection at the beginning of pregnancy markedly affects the development of the fetus in size, weight, and development of its limbs so that the control of the pregnant mother is relevant at the beginning of gestation
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreina Gómez
- Cell Biology Department, Simón Bolívar University, Valle de Sartenejas, Caracas
| | - Beatriz Pernía
- University of Guayaquil, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Av. Raúl Gómez Lince s/n y Av. Juan Tanca Marengo, Guayaquil, Ecuador
| | - Lizbeth Zamora
- School of Biological Sciences and Engineering, Yachay Tech University, San Miguel de Urcuquí, Ecuador
| | - Lilian M. Spencer
- School of Biological Sciences and Engineering, Yachay Tech University, San Miguel de Urcuquí, Ecuador Cell Biology Department, Simón Bolívar University, Valle de Sartenejas, Caracas
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