Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013 Mar 5:13:123.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2334-13-123.

A longitudinal study on anaemia in children with Plasmodium falciparum infection in the Mount Cameroon region: prevalence, risk factors and perceptions by caregivers

Irene Ule Ngole Sumbele  1 , Moses Samje, Theresa Nkuo-Akenji
Affiliations

A longitudinal study on anaemia in children with Plasmodium falciparum infection in the Mount Cameroon region: prevalence, risk factors and perceptions by caregivers

Irene Ule Ngole Sumbele et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: In heavily endemic malaria areas, it is almost inevitable that malarial infection will be associated with anaemia, although malaria may not be the prime cause of it. Anaemia is a major public health problem in Cameroon. We hypothesized that, factors other than falciparum malaria account for anaemia in the study area.

Methods: A longitudinal study was conducted among 351 Plasmodium falciparum positive children to determine the prevalence, risk factors and the perception of anaemia by the caregivers in a semi-rural community. The investigative methods included the use of a structured questionnaire, clinical evaluation and laboratory investigations.

Results: At enrolment the overall prevalence of anaemia as assessed by Hb concentration (Hb < 11 g/dl) was 80.3% (282). Following treatment the prevalence of persistent anaemia was 6% and 46.2% of the children achieved haematological recovery by day 42. Exploratory multiple linear regression analysis showed the following; parasitaemia density (P < 0.01), enlarged spleen (P < 0.05), duration of fever > 2 days (P < 0.01), high white blood cell count (P < 0.001), sex (P < 0.05), iron status indicators (ferritin and transferrin) (P < 0.001), level of education of the caregiver (P < 0.05), management of onset of malaria by caregiver (P < 0.005) and wasting (P < 0.05) to be risk factors for anaemia in children with falciparum infection. Approximately 75.5% (265) of the caregivers had some knowledge about anaemia.

Conclusion: The identified risk factors revealed the important contributors to the pathogenesis of anaemia in the Mount Cameroon region. Control efforts should therefore be directed towards proper health education emphasizing on proper health seeking behaviour and attitudes of the population.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Prevalence of malaria parasitaemia, clinical malaria and anaemia during follow up.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Proportion of children with anaemia during follow up.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. WHO. World Malaria report. Global malaria programme. Geneva: World Health Organization publication; 2011.
    1. WHO. World malaria report. Geneva: World Health Organization/United Nations Children’s Fund; 2005. http://rbm.who.int/wmr2005/
    1. Facer CA. Infection and Hematology. Oxford: Butterworth Heinmann Ltd; 1994. Hematological aspects of malaria; pp. 259–294.
    1. Murphy GS, Oldfield EC. Falciparum malaria. Infect Dis Clin North Am. 1996;10:747–770. doi: 10.1016/S0891-5520(05)70325-1. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Nussenblatt V, Semba RD. Micronutrient malnutrition and the pathogenesis of malarial anaemia. Acta Trop. 2002;82:321–337. doi: 10.1016/S0001-706X(02)00049-9. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms