Randomized controlled trial of levamisole hydrochloride as adjunctive therapy in severe falciparum malaria with high parasitemia.

Background: Cytoadherence and sequestration of erythrocytes containing mature stages of Plasmodium falciparum are central to the pathogenesis of severe malaria. The oral anthelminthic drug levamisole inhibits cytoadherence in vitro and reduces sequestration of late-stage parasites in uncomplicated falciparum malaria treated with quinine.

Methods: Fifty-six adult patients with severe malaria and high parasitemia admitted to a referral hospital in Bangladesh were randomized to receive a single dose of levamisole hydrochloride (150 mg) or no adjuvant to antimalarial treatment with intravenous artesunate.

Temporal trends in severe malaria in Chittagong, Bangladesh.

Background: Epidemiological data on malaria in Bangladesh are sparse, particularly on severe and fatal malaria. This hampers the allocation of healthcare provision in this resource-poor setting. Over 85% of the estimated 150,000-250,000 annual malaria cases in Bangladesh occur in Chittagong Division with 80% in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT).

Open-label randomized clinical trial of atropine bolus injection versus incremental boluses plus infusion for organophosphate poisoning in Bangladesh.

Severe organophosphate compound (OPC) poisoning is an important clinical problem in many countries of the world. Unfortunately, little clinical research has been performed and little evidence exists with which to determine the best therapy. A study was therefore undertaken to determine the optimal dosing regimen for atropine in the treatment of OPC poisoning.

Timing of enteral feeding in cerebral malaria in resource-poor settings: a randomized trial.

Background: Early start of enteral feeding is an established treatment strategy in intubated patients in intensive care since it reduces invasive bacterial infections and length of hospital stay. There is equipoise whether early enteral feeding is also beneficial in non-intubated patients with cerebral malaria in resource poor settings. We hypothesized that the risk of aspiration pneumonia might outweigh the potential benefits of earlier recovery and prevention of hypoglycaemia.

Malarial retinopathy in Bangladeshi adults.

To establish if assessment of malarial retinopathy in adult malaria using ophthalmoscopy by non-ophthalmologists has clinical and prognostic significance, 210 Bangladeshi adults were assessed by both direct and indirect ophthalmoscopy; 20 of 20 healthy subjects and 20 of 20 patients with vivax malaria showed no retinal changes, whereas in patients with falciparum malaria, indirect ophthalmoscopy revealed malarial retinopathy (predominantly retinal hemorrhages) in 18 of 21 (86%) fatal, 31 of 75 (41%) cerebral, 16 of 64 (25%) non-cerebral but severe, and 1 of 31 (3%) uncomplicated cases. Direct ophthalmoscopy missed retinopathy in one of these cases and found fewer retinal hemorrhages (mean difference = 3.09; 95% confidence interval = 1.

CMCH and MORU: a Highly Successful Collaboration.

Chittagong Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) in Chittagong, Bangladesh, and Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) of Bangkok, Thailand, are partners in a highly successful and productive research collaboration that is now heading into its tenth year. It produced arguably one of the most important clinical trials in tropical medicine this decade, the South-East-Asia-Quinine-Artesuante-Malaria-Trial (SEAQUAMAT) study, and has continued to evolve and grow ever since. The collaboration has successfully completed a number of significant clinical studies which have given important new insights into the management and pathogenesis of malaria and, to date, generated 14 peer-reviewed international journal publications.

A simple score to predict the outcome of severe malaria in adults.

Background: World Health Organization treatment guidelines recommend that adults with severe malaria be admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). However, ICU facilities are limited in the resource-poor settings where most malaria occurs. Identification of patients at greater risk of complications may facilitate their triage and resource allocation.

Severe malaria is associated with a deficiency of von Willebrand factor cleaving protease, ADAMTS13.

Severe falciparum malaria remains a major killer in tropical countries. Central in the pathophysiology is mechanical obstruction in the microcirculation caused by cytoadherence and sequestration of parasitized erythrocytes. However, the pathogenesis of many features complicating severe malaria, including coma, renal failure and thrombocytopenia, remains incompletely understood.

The spectrum of retinopathy in adults with Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

A specific retinopathy has been described in African children with cerebral malaria, but in adults this has not been extensively studied. Since the structure and function of the retinal vasculature greatly resembles the cerebral vasculature, study of retinal changes can reveal insights into the pathophysiology of cerebral malaria. A detailed observational study of malarial retinopathy in Bangladeshi adults was performed using high-definition portable retinal photography.

Does artesunate prolong the electrocardiograph QT interval in patients with severe malaria?

Several antimalarials can cause significant prolongation of the electrocardiograph QT interval, which can be associated with an increased risk of potentially lethal ventricular arrhythmias. High doses of artemether and artemotil have been associated with QT prolongation in dogs, raising the possibility of a class effect with the artemisinin derivatives. Serial electrocardiograms were recorded, and QTc interval was calculated before and after administration of artesunate by intravenous injection in patients with severe falciparum malaria in Bangladesh.

N-acetylcysteine as adjunctive treatment in severe malaria: a randomized, double-blinded placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Objective: Markers of oxidative stress are reported to be increased in severe malaria. It has been suggested that the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) may be beneficial in treatment. We studied the efficacy and safety of parenteral NAC as an adjunct to artesunate treatment of severe falciparum malaria.