Retinal hemorrhage and internal limiting membrane detachment in Plasmodium vivax infection: A case report

Abstract

Retinal hemorrhage is common in Plasmodium falciparum and has been seldom reported with Plasmodium vivax. A 13-year-old girl presented with vision loss in both eyes after 1 week of intravenous artemisinin-based combination treatment for P. vivax. The patient had bilateral vision of 1/60 with retinal hemorrhage and internal limiting membrane (ILM) detachment. In view of heme-toxicity, the patient underwent an intravitreal tissue plasminogen activator along with 100% sulfur hexafluoride. Following this, hemorrhage resolved and vision improved to 6/9. Thus, although rare, retinal hemorrhage and ILM detachment can also be seen with P. vivax, albeit more common in P. falciparum.

Keywords

• malarial retinopathy
• plasmodium vivax
• retinal hemorrhage