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Article: Early diagnosis and treatment is the key to effectively managing malaria.(Management of uncomplicated malaria)(Report)
- Article from:
- CME: Your SA Journal of CPD
- Article date:
- June 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 South African Medical Association. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The key issues in the successful management of malaria are early and accurate diagnosis and urgent treatment with effective drugs. Disease presentation is, however, not specific--progression to complicated disease may be rapid in non-immune persons, particularly in young children and pregnant women, and parasite drug resistance significantly influences treatment outcome. (1)
There are four species of human malaria parasite, but this brief review focuses on the most prevalent and pathogenic species, Plasmodium falciparum. The outcome of a falciparum malaria attack depends on the interaction of host, parasite and environmental factors, and ranges from asymptomatic ...