A global call for talaromycosis to be recognised as a neglected tropical disease

Talaromycosis (penicilliosis) is an invasive mycosis that is endemic in tropical and subtropical Asia. Talaromycosis primarily affects individuals with advanced HIV disease and other immunosuppressive conditions, and the disease disproportionally affects people in low-income and middle-income countries, particularly agricultural workers in rural areas during their most economically productive years. Approximately 17 300 talaromycosis cases and 4900 associated deaths occur annually. Talaromycosis is highly associated with the tropical monsoon season, when flooding and cyclones can exacerbate the poverty-inducing potential of the disease. Talaromycosis can present as localised or disseminated disease, the latter causing cutaneous lesions that are disfiguring and stigmatising. Despite up to a third of diagnosed cases resulting in death, talaromycosis has received little attention and investment from regional and global funders, policy makers, researchers, and industry. Diagnostic and treatment modalities remain extremely insufficient, however control of talaromycosis is feasible with known public health strategies. This Viewpoint is a global call for talaromycosis to be recognised as a neglected tropical disease to alleviate its impact on susceptible populations.

The impact of gender and the social determinants of health on the clinical course of people living with HIV in Myanmar: an observational study

Background

There is a growing recognition of the impact of gender and the social determinants of health on the clinical course of people living with HIV (PLHIV). However, the relative contribution of these factors to clinical outcomes of PLHIV is incompletely defined in many countries. This study was performed to gain a greater understanding of the non-clinical determinants of prognosis of PLHIV in Myanmar.

Methods

Selected demographic, behavioural and socioeconomic characteristics of outpatients at two specialist HIV hospitals and one general hospital in Yangon, Myanmar were correlated with their subsequent clinical course; a poor outcome was defined as death, hospitalisation, loss to follow-up or a detectable viral load at 6 months of follow-up.

Results

221 consecutive individuals with advanced HIV commencing anti-retroviral therapy (ART) were enrolled in the study; their median CD4 T-cell count was 92 (44–158) cells/mm³, 138 (62.4%) were male. Socioeconomic disadvantage was common: the median (interquartile range (IQR) monthly per-capita income in the cohort was US$48 (31–77); 153 (69.9%) had not completed high school. However, in a multivariate analysis that considered demographic, behavioural, clinical factors and social determinants of health, male gender was the only predictor of a poor outcome: odds ratio (95% confidence interval): 2.33 (1.26–4.32, p = 0.007). All eight of the deaths and hospitalisations in the cohort occurred in males (p = 0.03).

Conclusions

Men starting ART in Myanmar have a poorer prognosis than women. Expanded implementation of gender-specific management strategies is likely to be necessary to improve outcomes.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12981-021-00364-w.

Observational study of adult respiratory infections in primary care clinics in Myanmar: understanding the burden of melioidosis, tuberculosis and other infections not covered by empirical treatment regimes

BACKGROUND

Lower respiratory infections constitute a major disease burden worldwide. Treatment is usually empiric and targeted towards typical bacterial pathogens. Understanding the prevalence of pathogens not covered by empirical treatment is important to improve diagnostic and treatment algorithms.

METHODS

A prospective observational study in peri-urban communities of Yangon, Myanmar was conducted between July 2018 and April 2019. Sputum specimens of 299 adults presenting with fever and productive cough were tested for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (microscopy and GeneXpert MTB/RIF [Mycobacterium tuberculosis/resistance to rifampicin]) and Burkholderia pseudomallei (Active Melioidosis Detect Lateral Flow Assay and culture). Nasopharyngeal swabs underwent respiratory virus (influenza A, B, respiratory syncytial virus) polymerase chain reaction testing.

RESULTS

Among 299 patients, 32% (95% confidence interval [CI] 26 to 37) were diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB), including 9 rifampicin-resistant cases. TB patients presented with a longer duration of fever (median 14 d) and productive cough (median 30 d) than non-TB patients (median fever duration 6 d, cough 7 d). One case of melioidosis pneumonia was detected by rapid test and confirmed by culture. Respiratory viruses were detected in 16% (95% CI 12 to 21) of patients.

CONCLUSIONS

TB was very common in this population, suggesting that microscopy and GeneXpert MTB/RIF on all sputum samples should be routinely included in diagnostic algorithms for fever and cough. Melioidosis was uncommon in this population.

Investigating potential transmission of antimicrobial resistance in an open-plan hospital ward: a cross-sectional metagenomic study of resistome dispersion in a lower middle-income setting

BACKGROUND

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a profound global health threat. Reducing AMR spread requires the identification of transmission pathways. The extent to which hospital wards represent a venue for substantial AMR transmission in low- and middle-income countries settings is poorly understood.

METHODS

Rectal swabs were obtained from adult male inpatients in a "Nightingale" model general medicine ward in Yangon, Myanmar. Resistome characteristics were characterised by metagenomic sequencing. AMR gene carriage was related to inter-patient distance (representing inter-patient interaction) using distance-based linear models. Clinical predictors of AMR patterns were identified through univariate and multivariate regression.

RESULTS

Resistome similarity showed a weak but significant positive correlation with inter-patient distance (r = 0.12, p = 0.04). Nineteen AMR determinants contributed significantly to this relationship, including those encoding β-lactamase activity (OXA-1, NDM-7; adjusted p < 0.003), trimethoprim resistance (dfrA14, adjusted p = 0.0495), and chloramphenicol resistance (catB3, adjusted p = 0.002). Clinical traits of co-located patients carrying specific AMR genes were not random. Specifically, AMR genes that contributed to distance-resistome relationships (OXA-1, catB3, dfrA14) mapped to tuberculosis patients, who were placed together according to ward policy. In contrast, patients with sepsis were not placed together, and carried AMR genes that were not spatially significant or consistent with shared antibiotic exposure.

CONCLUSIONS

AMR dispersion patterns primarily reflect the placement of particular patients by their condition, rather than AMR transmission. The proportion of AMR determinants that varied with inter-patient distance was limited, suggesting that nosocomial transmission is a relatively minor contributor to population-level carriage.

The comparative ability of commonly used disease severity scores to predict death or a requirement for ICU care in patients hospitalised with possible sepsis in Yangon, Myanmar

OBJECTIVES

To determine the comparative prognostic utility of commonly used disease prediction scores in adults with presumed community-acquired sepsis in a resource-limited tropical setting.

METHODS

This prospective, observational study was performed on the medical ward of a tertiary-referral hospital in Yangon, Myanmar. The ability of the National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2), quick NEWS (qNEWS), quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score, Universal Vital Assessment (UVA) and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores to predict a complicated inpatient course (death or requirement for intensive care unit (ICU) support) in patients with two or more systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria was determined.

RESULTS

Among the 509 patients, 30 (6%) were HIV-seropositive. The most commonly confirmed diagnoses were tuberculosis (30/509, 5.9%) and measles (26/509, 5.1%). Overall, 75/509 (14.7%) died or required ICU support. All the scores except the qSOFA score, which was inferior, had a similar ability to predict a complicated inpatient course.

CONCLUSIONS

In this resource-limited tropical setting, disease severity scores calculated at presentation using only vital signs-such as the NEWS2 score-identified high-risk sepsis patient as well as the SOFA score, which is calculated at 24 h and which also requires laboratory data. Use of these simple clinical scores can be used to facilitate recognition of the high-risk patient and to optimise the use of finite resources.

Time for pragmatic, prospective clinical trials to determine the role of empirical antibacterial therapy in critically ill adults hospitalized with malaria

BACKGROUND

Children with severe falciparum malaria in malaria-endemic regions are predisposed to developing life-threatening bacterial co-infection. International guidelines therefore recommend empirical broad-spectrum antibacterial therapy in these children. Few studies have examined co-infection in adults, although it has been believed to be relatively rare; antibacterial therapy is therefore not routinely recommended in adults with falciparum malaria.

DISCUSSION

However, the fundamental pathophysiology of falciparum malaria in adults and children is the same; it is therefore unclear why adults would not also be predisposed to bacterial infection. Indeed, recent studies have identified bacteraemia in >10% of adults hospitalized with malaria. Some have suggested that these adults probably had bacterial sepsis, with the parasitaemia an incidental finding. However, it is usually impossible in resource-limited settings to determine-at presentation-whether critically ill, parasitaemic adults have severe malaria, bacterial sepsis, or both. Given the significant case-fatality rates of severe malaria and bacterial sepsis, the pragmatic initial approach would be to cover both possibilities.

CONCLUSIONS

Life-threatening bacterial co-infection may be more common in critically ill adults with malaria than previously believed. While further prospective data are awaited to confirm these findings, it might be more appropriate to provide empirical aantibacterial cover in these patients than current guidelines suggest.

The Influence of HIV Status on the Burden and Clinical Manifestations of Gastrointestinal Pathogens in Yangon, Myanmar

The impact of HIV infection on the burden of gastrointestinal pathogens in Myanmar is poorly defined. Stools of 103 HIV-infected and 105 HIV-uninfected adult outpatients at a tertiary referral hospital in Yangon were examined microscopically. Stool antigen tests for Helicobacter pylori infection were positive in 63/103 (61%) HIV-infected and 61/105 (58%) HIV-uninfected patients (P = 0.65). Soil-transmitted helminth infections were much less common, occurring in 9/103 (9%) HIV-infected and 13/103 (13%) HIV-uninfected patients (P = 0.50). One HIV-uninfected patient had Giardia duodenalis, but there were no cases of Strongyloides stercoralis, Entamoeba histolytica, Capillaria philippinensis, Isospora, Cyclospora, or Schistosoma infection in the entire cohort. Despite the high prevalence of H. pylori, only 1/208 (0.5%) had ever received eradication, compared with 159/208 (76%) who had ever been dewormed. Helicobacter pylori appears to be an underappreciated pathogen in Myanmar. Its strong association with gastric cancer and peptic ulcer disease necessitates a more aggressive approach to its management.

Sequential Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy in Myanmar; a randomized clinical trial of efficacy and tolerability

BACKGROUND AND AIM

There is little published research to examine the best approach to the management of Helicobacter pylori in Myanmar. This study aimed to determine the relative efficacy and tolerability of sequential eradication therapy compared to Myanmar's current recommendation of a concomitant four drug regimen.

METHODS

Patients were screened for H. pylori using monoclonal Stool Antigen Testing (SAT). Those testing positive were randomized 1:1 to receive receive Myanmar's first-line regimen of 14 days of concomitant rabeprazole, clarithromycin, amoxycillin and tinidazole (140 pills, cost US$23) or 10 days of sequential rabeprazole, clarithromycin, amoxycillin and tinidazole (60 pills, cost US$10). Adherence and adverse effects were recorded, and the efficacy of the regimens assessed with repeat SAT.

RESULTS

Of the 1011 patients screened for H. pylori infection, 313 (31%) tested positive. There was no statistical difference in the cure rates of the two regimens in either intention-to-treat: 128/157 (82%; 95% confidence interval (CI): 75-87%) receiving sequential therapy versus 123/156 (79%; 95% CI: 72-85%) receiving concomitant therapy (P = 0.55) or per-protocol analysis: 125/131 (95%; 95% CI: 90-98) receiving sequential therapy versus 121/130 (93%; 95% CI: 87-96) receiving concomitant therapy (P = 0.42). Side effects of therapy were reported in 54/157 (47%) patients taking sequential therapy compared with 62/156 (53%) taking concomitant therapy, but this difference did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.33).

CONCLUSIONS

In this high-burden, resource-poor setting, less expensive sequential therapy was as effective and as well tolerated as the currently recommended concomitant four drug regimen for eradication of H. pylori.

The clinical characteristics of patients with sepsis in a tertiary referral hospital in Yangon, Myanmar

Background

The clinical characteristics and course of patients hospitalised with sepsis in Myanmar and the responsible pathogens remain poorly defined.

Methods

We performed an observational study of adults admitted from the community to a tertiary referral hospital in Yangon with fever and dysfunction of at least two organ systems.

Results

The 120 patients had a median age of 47 y (interquartile range 28-63); 11 (9%) were human immunodeficiency virus positive. Limited laboratory support meant that a microbiological diagnosis was possible in only 35 (29%) patients, but 18 (13%) had pathogens in blood cultures, including 9 (50%) organisms that were multidrug resistant (4 Escherichia coli, 4 Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 1 Burkholderia pseudomallei). Tuberculosis was confirmed in six patients, with two being rifampicin resistant, and dengue infection was confirmed in five patients. Without access to comprehensive intensive care support, 34 (28%) patients died. An admission National Early Warning Score ≥7 (odds ratio [OR] 8.6 [95% confidence interval {CI} 2.6 to 28.2], p=0.001) and quick sequential (sepsis-related) organ failure assessment score ≥2 (OR 3.2 [95% CI 1.3 to 8.0], p=0.02) were helpful in predicting death.

Conclusions

Tropical pathogens are a common cause of sepsis in Myanmar. The frequent identification of multidrug-resistant organisms and limited diagnostic and intensive care support hinder patient care significantly. However, simple clinical assessment on admission has prognostic utility.

Antibiotic Therapy in Adults with Malaria (ANTHEM): High Rate of Clinically Significant Bacteremia in Hospitalized Adults Diagnosed with Falciparum Malaria

It has been believed that concomitant bacteremia is uncommon in adults hospitalized with falciparum malaria. Accordingly, the World Health Organization treatment guidelines presently only recommended additional antibacterial therapy in these patients if they have a clinical syndrome compatible with serious bacterial infection. Admission blood cultures were collected from 20 consecutive adults in Myanmar, hospitalized with a positive immunochromatographic test and blood film, suggesting a diagnosis of falciparum malaria; four (20%) had bacteremia with a clinically significant pathogen. These case series' data were pooled with a previously published multicenter study from Myanmar which had also collected blood cultures in adults hospitalized with a diagnosis of falciparum malaria. Among 87 patients in the two studies, 13 (15%) had clinically significant bacteremia on admission, with Gram-negative organisms in 10 (77%) and Staphylococcus aureus in the remaining three (23%). Bacteremic patients had more severe disease than non-bacteremic patients (median [interquartile range] respiratory coma acidosis malaria score 2 [1-4] versus 1 [1-2], P = 0.02) and were more likely to die (2/13 [15%] versus 1/74 [1%], P = 0.01). However, bacterial coinfection was suspected clinically in a minority of bacteremic patients (5/13 [38%] compared with 13/70 [19%] of non-bacteremic patients, P = 0.11). Concomitant bacteremia in adults diagnosed with falciparum malaria may be more common than previously believed and is difficult to identify clinically in resource-poor settings. Death is more common in these patients, suggesting that clinicians should have a lower threshold for commencing empirical antibacterial therapy in adults diagnosed with falciparum malaria in these locations than is presently recommended.

The clinical characteristics of adults with rheumatic heart disease in Yangon, Myanmar: An observational study

BACKGROUND

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is a major cause of premature death in low and middle-income countries. The greatest barrier to RHD control is neglect of the disease in national health policies and a lack of prevalence data that might inform control efforts. Myanmar is making remarkable progress against many infectious diseases, but there are almost no data to define the clinical burden of RHD in the country. This prospective audit was performed in an adult medical ward of a tertiary-referral hospital in Yangon, to gain an insight into the prevalence of RHD in Myanmar.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

All patients admitted to the ward between May 1, 2016 and April 30, 2017 were eligible for enrolment. RHD was confirmed in 96 patients who were admitted on 134 occasions, representing 1.1% of the 12,172 adult medical admissions during the study period. This compared with 410 (3.4%) admissions with HIV and 14 (0.1%) with malaria. Patients with RHD had a median age of 44 years (interquartile range: 35-59); 70 (73%) were female. Only one patient had ever had surgery despite 79 (82%) meeting criteria for intervention; 54 (56%) patients were not receiving any regular clinician review. Prior to hospitalisation only 18 (19%) patients were receiving regular penicillin. Only 8 (19%) of the 42 women <50 years were using contraception. Of 49 patients who had been hospitalised previously, 22 (45%) were receiving no regular therapy. During the study three (3.1%) patients died, and 28 (29%) were lost to follow-up. Of the 65 (68%) alive and retained in care, 21 (32%) were still experiencing moderate-severe RHD-related symptoms at the study's end.

CONCLUSIONS

There is a significant and unmet clinical burden of RHD in Myanmar. A national RHD programme would improve patient care, reducing morbidity and mortality from this preventable disease.

The clinical utility of the urine-based lateral flow lipoarabinomannan assay in HIV-infected adults in Myanmar: an observational study

BACKGROUND

The use of the point-of-care lateral flow lipoarabinomannan (LF-LAM) test may expedite tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in HIV-positive patients. However, the test's clinical utility is poorly defined outside sub-Saharan Africa.

METHODS

The study enrolled consecutive HIV-positive adults at a tertiary referral hospital in Yangon, Myanmar. On enrolment, patients had a LF-LAM test performed according to the manufacturer's instructions. Clinicians managing the patients were unaware of the LF-LAM result, which was correlated with the patient's clinical course over the ensuing 6 months.

RESULTS

The study enrolled 54 inpatients and 463 outpatients between July 1 and December 31, 2015. On enrolment, the patients' median (interquartile range) CD4 T-cell count was 270 (128-443) cells/mm³. The baseline LF-LAM test was positive in 201/517 (39%). TB was confirmed microbiologically during follow-up in 54/517 (10%), with rifampicin resistance present in 8/54 (15%). In the study's resource-limited setting, extrapulmonary testing for TB was not possible, but after 6 months, 97/201 (48%) with a positive LF-LAM test on enrolment had neither died, required hospitalisation, received a TB diagnosis or received empirical anti-TB therapy, suggesting a high rate of false-positive results. Of the 97 false-positive tests, 89 (92%) were grade 1 positive, suggesting poor test specificity using this cut-off. Only 21/517 (4%) patients were inpatients with TB symptoms and a CD4 T-cell count of < 100 cells/mm³. Five (24%) of these 21 died, three of whom had a positive LF-LAM test on enrolment. However, all three received anti-TB therapy before death - two after diagnosis with Xpert MTB/RIF testing, while the other received empirical treatment. It is unlikely that knowledge of the baseline LF-LAM result would have averted any of the study's other 11 deaths; eight had a negative test, and of the three patients with a positive test, two received anti-TB therapy before death, while one died from laboratory-confirmed cryptococcal meningitis. The test was no better than a simple, clinical history excluding TB during follow-up (negative predictive value (95% confidence interval): 94% (91-97) vs. 94% (91-96)).

CONCLUSIONS

The LF-LAM test had limited clinical utility in the management of HIV-positive patients in this Asian referral hospital setting.

HIV care in Yangon, Myanmar; successes, challenges and implications for policy

Background

Approximately 0.8% of adults aged 18–49 in Myanmar are seropositive for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Identifying the demographic, epidemiological and clinical characteristics of people living with HIV (PLHIV) is essential to inform optimal management strategies in this resource-limited country.

Methods

To create a “snapshot” of the PLHIV seeking anti-retroviral therapy (ART) in Myanmar, data were collected from the registration cards of all patients who had been prescribed ART at two large referral hospitals in Yangon, prior to March 18, 2016.

Results and discussion

Anti-retroviral therapy had been prescribed to 2643 patients at the two hospitals. The patients’ median [interquartile range (IQR)] age was 37 (31–44) years; 1494 (57%) were male. At registration, injecting drug use was reported in 22 (0.8%), male-to-male sexual contact in eleven (0.4%) and female sex work in eleven (0.4%), suggesting that patients under-report these risk behaviours, that health care workers are uncomfortable enquiring about them or that the two hospitals are under-servicing these populations. All three explanations appear likely. Most patients were symptomatic at registration with 2027 (77%) presenting with WHO stage 3 or 4 disease. In the 2442 patients with a CD4+ T cell count recorded at registration, the median (IQR) count was 169 (59–328) cells/mm³. After a median (IQR) duration of 359 (185–540) days of ART, 151 (5.7%) patients had died, 111 (4.2%) patients had been lost to follow-up, while 2381 were alive on ART. Tuberculosis (TB) co-infection was common: 1083 (41%) were already on anti-TB treatment at registration, while a further 41 (1.7%) required anti-TB treatment during follow-up. Only 21 (0.8%) patients were prescribed isoniazid prophylaxis therapy (IPT); one of these was lost to follow-up, but none of the remaining 20 patients died or required anti-TB treatment during a median (IQR) follow-up of 275 (235–293) days.

Conclusions

People living with HIV in Yangon, Myanmar are generally presenting late in their disease course, increasing their risk of death, disease and transmitting the virus. A centralised model of ART prescription struggles to deliver care to the key affected populations. TB co-infection is very common in Myanmar, but despite the proven efficacy of IPT, it is frequently not prescribed.

Malaria incidence in Myanmar 2005-2014: steady but fragile progress towards elimination

Background

There has been an impressive recent reduction in the global incidence of malaria, but the development of artemisinin resistance in the Greater Mekong Region threatens this progress. Increasing artemisinin resistance is particularly important in Myanmar, as it is the country in the Greater Mekong Region with the greatest malaria burden. If malaria is to be eliminated in the region, it is essential to define the spatial and temporal epidemiology of the disease in Myanmar to inform control strategies optimally.

Results

Between the years 2005 and 2014 there was an 81.1 % decline in the reported annual incidence of malaria in Myanmar (1341.8 cases per 100,000 population to 253.3 cases per 100,000 population). In the same period, there was a 93.5 % decline in reported annual mortality from malaria (3.79 deaths per 100,000 population to 0.25 deaths per 100,000 population) and a 87.2 % decline in the proportion of hospitalizations due to malaria (7.8 to 1.0 %). Chin State had the highest reported malaria incidence and mortality at the end of the study period, although socio-economic and geographical factors appear a more likely explanation for this finding than artemisinin resistance. The reduced malaria burden coincided with significant upscaling of disease control measures by the national government with support from international partners. These programmes included the training and deployment of over 40,000 community health care workers, the coverage of over 60 % of the at-risk population with insecticide-treated bed nets and significant efforts to improve access to artemesinin-based combination treatment. Beyond these malaria-specific programmes, increased general investment in the health sector, changing population demographics and deforestation are also likely to have contributed to the decline in malaria incidence seen over this time.

Conclusions

There has been a dramatic fall in the burden of malaria in Myanmar since 2005. However, with the rise of artemisinin resistance, continued political, financial and scientific commitment is required if the ambitious goal of malaria elimination in the country is to be realized.

High Frequency of Clinically Significant Bacteremia in Adults Hospitalized With Falciparum Malaria

Background.  African children with severe falciparum malaria commonly have concomitant Gram-negative bacteremia, but co-infection has been thought to be relatively rare in adult malaria. Methods.  Adults with a diagnosis of falciparum malaria hospitalized at 4 tertiary referral hospitals in Myanmar had blood cultures collected at admission. The frequency of concomitant bacteremia and the clinical characteristics of the patients, with and without bacteremia, were explored. Results.  Of 67 adults hospitalized with falciparum malaria, 9 (13% [95% confidence interval, 5.3%-21.6%]) were also bacteremic on admission, 7 (78%) with Gram-negative enteric organisms (Escherichia coli [n = 3], typhoidal Salmonella species [n = 3], nontyphoidal Salmonella [n = 1]). Bacteremic adults had more severe disease (median Respiratory Coma Acidosis Malaria [RCAM] score 3; interquartile range [IQR], 1-4) than those without bacteremia (median RCAM score 1; IQR, 1-2) and had a higher frequency of acute kidney injury (50% vs 16%, P = .03). Although 35 (52%) were at high risk of death (RCAM score ≥2), all 67 patients in the study survived, 51 (76%) of whom received empirical antibiotics on admission. Conclusions.  Bacteremia was relatively frequent in adults hospitalized with falciparum malaria in Myanmar. Like children in high transmission settings, bacteremic adults in this low transmission setting were sicker than nonbacteremic adults, and were often difficult to identify at presentation. Empirical antibiotics may also be appropriate in adults hospitalized with falciparum malaria in low transmission settings, until bacterial infection is excluded.

The Safety of a Conservative Fluid Replacement Strategy in Adults Hospitalised with Malaria

Background

A conservative approach to fluid resuscitation improves survival in children with severe malaria; however, this strategy has not been formally evaluated in adults with the disease.

Methods

Adults hospitalised with malaria at two tertiary referral hospitals in Myanmar received intravenous fluid replacement with isotonic saline, administered at a maintenance rate using a simple weight-based algorithm. Clinical and biochemical indices were followed sequentially.

Results

Of 61 adults enrolled, 34 (56%) had Plasmodium falciparum mono-infection, 17 (28%) Plasmodium vivax mono-infection and 10 (16%) mixed infection; 27 (44%) patients were at high risk of death (P. falciparum infection and RCAM score ≥ 2). In the first six hours of hospitalisation patients received a mean 1.7 ml/kg/hour (range: 1.3–2.2) of intravenous fluid and were able to drink a mean of 0.8 ml/kg/hour (range: 0–3). Intravenous fluid administration and oral intake were similar for the remainder of the first 48 hours of hospitalisation. All 61 patients survived to discharge. No patient developed Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome, a requirement for renal replacement therapy or hypotension (mean arterial pressure < 60mmHg). Plasma lactate was elevated (> 2 mmol/L) on enrolment in 26 (43%) patients but had declined by 6 hours in 25 (96%) and was declining at 24 hours in the other patient. Plasma creatinine was elevated (> 120 μmol/L) on enrolment in 17 (28%) patients, but was normal or falling in 16 (94%) at 48 hours and declining in the other patient by 72 hours. There was no clinically meaningful increase in plasma lactate or creatinine in any patient with a normal value on enrolment. Patients receiving fluid replacement with the conservative fluid replacement algorithm were more likely to survive than historical controls in the same hospitals who had received fluid replacement guided by clinical judgement in the year prior to the study (p = 0.03), despite having more severe disease (p < 0.001).

Conclusions

A conservative fluid resuscitation strategy appears safe in adults hospitalised with malaria.

The prognostic utility of bedside assessment of adults hospitalized with malaria in Myanmar: a retrospective analysis

Background

Data collected in clinical trials have been used to develop scoring systems that identify adults with malaria at greatest risk of death. One of these, the RCAM score, can be simply determined by measuring a patient’s Glasgow Coma Score and respiratory rate on admission to hospital. However the safety of using the RCAM score to define high-risk patients has not been assessed outside of the clinical trial setting.

Methods

A retrospective audit of medical records of all adults admitted with a diagnosis of malaria to two tertiary referral hospitals in Lower Myanmar in 2013 was undertaken. An RCAM score was calculated in all patients and related to their subsequent clinical course.

Results

The recent decline in malaria hospitalizations at both sites continued in 2013. During the year 90 adults were hospitalized with malaria; 62 (69%) had Plasmodium falciparum mono-infection, 11 (12%) had Plasmodium vivax mono-infection, 17 (19%) had mixed infection. All seven (7.7%) deaths occurred in patients infected with P. falciparum. An admission RCAM score <2 identified all the patients that would survive to discharge (positive predictive value (95% confidence interval (CI)) 100% (94.9-100%) and also predicted a requirement for less supportive care: 9/70 (13%) patients with an admission RCAM score <2 required supportive care (blood transfusion, vasopressor support or oxygen supplementation) during their hospitalization compared with 12/20 (60%) patients with an admission RCAM score ≥2 (p < 0.0001). No patient with P. vivax mono-infection required supportive care during their hospitalization. Patients with an oxygen saturation ≤95% on room air on admission were more likely to die before discharge (odds ratio 17.3 (95% CI: 2.9-101.2) than patients with a higher oxygen saturation (p = 0.002).

Conclusions

Even outside a clinical trial setting the RCAM score reliably identifies adults with malaria who are at greatest risk of death and can be safely used in the initial triage and management of these patients.