Aspects of imported malaria at a district general hospital in non-endemic Kuwait, Arabian Gulf

Abstract

There is no indigenous mosquito-borne transmission of malaria in Kuwait. However, in a five year period at a district general hospital, the number of laboratory-diagnosed cases of malaria increased annually from 25 to 84, a rise of 336%. Except for two induced infections, all were imported, mainly from the Indian subcontinent. Plasmodium vivax was responsible for 87.29% of the cases; P. falciparum (12.05%), a mixed infection of P. vivax and P. falciparum (0.33%) and a case of P. ovale (0.33%) were also identified. Rapid preparation of acetone-fixed, Giemsa-stained thick blood films, a heightened awareness of the infection, examination of multiple samples of blood from patients and the general resurgence of malaria in endemic areas were some of the factors responsible for the high number of cases diagnosed. Most patients were young males and presented with clinical malaria due to P. vivax between May and October each year, an apparent seasonal peak. However, many were already resident in the country for a variable period. Patients with P. falciparum though, presented clinically within two weeks of arrival in the country. Parasite densities were calculated to monitor the progress of treatment and identify quickly any possible chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum strains. A policy of active prophylaxis is suggested to stem the tide of imported malaria.