Research and Reports in Tropical Medicine (May 2021)
COVID-19 Associated Imported Plasmodium vivax Malaria Relapse: First Reported Case and Literature Review
Abstract
Zubair Shahid,1 Nadia Karim,1 Fakhar Shahid,2 Zohaib Yousaf1,3 1Internal Medicine, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; 2General Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar; 3Dresden International University, Dresden, GermanyCorrespondence: Zubair ShahidHamad Medical City, Hamad General Hospital, Doha, 3050, QatarTel +974-33009959Email [email protected]: Plasmodium vivax (P. vivax) is a protozoan parasite that causes vivax malaria. Disease relapse post-treatment is reported in P. vivax co-infection with other bacterial and parasitic infections, but Plasmodium vivax reactivation is not very common with viral infections. Early recognition and diagnosis of a Plasmodium vivax malaria relapse in a non-endemic region pose a diagnostic dilemma. COVID-19 co-infection compounds this dilemma due to overlapping symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential for a favorable clinical outcome. We report a middle-aged gentleman with high-grade fever and headaches who had COVID-19 and was found to have a relapse of Plasmodium vivax malaria.Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, fever, headaches, reactivation, co-infection
