Abstract:
HIV/AIDS and malaria are both major public health and socio-economic
problems in sub-Saharan Africa. HIV infection may, in particular, complicate
the clinical picture of malaria or its management. In this paper, malaria
parasitaemia and outcome of anti-malarial treatment is examined in relation
to HIV infection in patients based on a study conducted at the Moi Teaching
and Referral Hospital (MTRH) located in Eldoret, Kenya. One hundred
consenting patients with malaria were recruited into the study, malaria
parasitaemia levels, HIV status and CD4 counts were determined for each
patient, and the outcome of anti-malarial drug treatment with quinine or
artemisinin derivative drugs observed. Malaria parasitaemia was monitored
for each patient after antimalarial drug administration, for up to 7 days.
Regardless of patient age, malaria parasitaemia clearance in anti-malarial
drug treated, HIV negative patients was 2-3 days, whereas in the HIV
positive patients, parasitaemia did not clear even 7 days after initiating
treatment. The delay in parasitaemia clearance was more evident in patients
whose CD4 counts were below 200 cells /μL. Overall, nearly 88% of the
HIV negative patients with malaria had cleared malaria parasitaemia by the
end of the observation period, compared with only about 12% in the HIV
negative patients, P=0.012, OR=5.33 (1.53-18.56). It was thus concluded that
HIV infection may delay clearance of malaria parasitaemia in anti-malarial
drug treated patients.
