Cerebral malaria is most commonly associated with which of the following?
High-Yield Explanation
Appropriately and promptly treated, uncomplicated falciparum malaria (i.e., the patient can swallow medicines and food) carries a moality rate of 0.1%. However, once vital-organ dysfunction occurs or the total propoion of erythrocytes infected increases to >2% (a level corresponding to >1012 parasites in an adult), moality risk rises steeply. Cerebral Malaria : Coma is a characteristic and ominous feature of falciparum malaria and, despite treatment, is associated with death rates of 20% among adults and 15% among children. Any obtundation, delirium, or abnormal behavior should be taken very seriously. The onset may be gradual or sudden following a convulsion. Ref: White N.J., Breman J.G., Osler W. (2012). Chapter 210. Malaria. In D.L. Longo, A.S. Fauci, D.L. Kasper, S.L. Hauser, J.L. Jameson, J. Loscalzo (Eds), Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 18e.