Acute Kidney Injury in a Patient Receiving Antimalarial Therapy: A Case Report

Abstract

In this article, we present a case of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in a male patient who developed acute kidney injury during antimalarial treatment. A 38-years-old Turkish male patient was admitted to the emergency department with the complaints of fever and chills. The patient stated that he had no chronic illness, his complaints had started four days ago, and he had returned from Guinea 10 days ago. Multiple ring-shaped P. falciparum trophozoites were observed in Giemsa-stained thin blood smears, which were evaluated with a preliminary diagnosis of malaria due to travel history and clinical findings. Artemeter + Lumefantrine supplied by the provincial health directorate on the same night was administered according to the manufacturer’s recommended dose posology. On the third day of clinical follow-up, clinical, vital and peripheric smear findings continued to improve, while laboratory tests showed an acute increase in creatinine values, which is a signs of acute kidney injury. The patient’s creatinine values returned to normal on the sixth day with appropriate intravenous hydration. Keeping in mind that acute kidney injury can develop not only prior to treatment but also during the treatment period when patients receive antimalarial treatment, therefore, proper hydration and close monitoring of kidney functions during treatment are also important.

Keywords

• plasmodium falciparum
• antimalarials
• acute kidney injury