Cardiac involvement during and after malaria.
In 22 patients without a previous history of cardiac disease, we prospectively evaluated cardiac involvement during acute malaria and 9 +/- 5 months after recovery using non-invasive methods including resting electrocardiogram (ECG) and two-dimensional (2D) echocardiography. During the acute phase ECG abnormalities were common (5/22); pericardial effusion was found in 2 patients and global left ventricular hypokinesia in 1 patient infected with Plasmodium falciparum. At a follow-up of 19 patients, the resting ECG and echocardiography were normal or had normalized in all patients. The results of our study suggest that persistent cardiac damage following malarial infection seems to be rare; however, further trials in a larger patient population are needed to confirm our findings.
Franzen
D
D
Kliniken I und III für Innere Medizin Universität zu Köln.
Curtius
J M
JM
Heitz
W
W
Höpp
H W
HW
Diehl
V
V
Hilger
H H
HH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D009202:Cardiomyopathies / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004452:Echocardiography; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors