Abstract:
Background: Sustainable Development Goal number three call for complete reversal
in the incidence of malaria by 2030. Malaria however remains a health priority in
sub-Saharan Africa, with children under five experiencing the highest morbidity and
mortality. In clinical settings, management of malaria cases has primarily been centred
on case definition, giving minimal consideration to the asymptomatic individuals
who remain a major reservoir since they do not seek care. In malaria endemic areas,
infants are likely to remain asymptomatic since they have partial immunity acquired
from the mother.
Objective: To determine the proportion of infants with positive parasitemia and describe
their clinical and demographic characteristics.
Design: A cross-sectional study.
Setting: Webuye District Hospital, Western Kenya.
Subjects: Three hundred and eighty four infants.
Results: Prevalence of malaria parasitemia among enrolled infants was 61%. Infants
born to housewife mothers, born to mothers who attended ANC during pregnancy;
those weaned late or with family history of sickle cell disease were more likely to
have malaria parasitemia with p-values of 0.031,0.015,0.007, and 0.025 respectively.
Conclusion: Prevalence of malaria parasitemia among asymptomatic infants in Webuye
(Western Kenya) remains high.
