Indari Omkar, Baral Budhadev, Muduli Kartik, Mohanty Ambika Prasad, Swain Natabar, Mohakud Nirmal Kumar, Jha Hem Chandra
Department of Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Indore, India.
School of Biotechnology, KIIT Deemed University, Odisha, India.
Biosaf Health. 2021 Aug;3(4):230-234. doi: 10.1016/j.bsheal.2021.04.001. Epub 2021 Apr 30.
In malaria-endemic regions, people often get exposed to various pathogens simultaneously, generating co-infection scenarios. In such scenarios, overlapping symptoms pose serious diagnostic challenges. The delayed diagnosis may lead to an increase in disease severity and catastrophic events. Recent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected various areas globally, including malaria-endemic regions. The and SARS-CoV-2 co-infection and its effect on health are yet unexplored. We present a case report of a previously healthy, middle-aged individual from the malaria-endemic area who suffered SARS-CoV-2 and co-infection. The patient developed severe disease indications in a short time period. The patient showed neurological symptoms, altered hematological as well as liver-test parameters, and subsequent death in a narrow time span. We hereby discuss the various aspects of this case regarding treatment and hematological parameters. Further, we have put forward perspectives related to the mechanism behind severity and neurological symptoms in this fatal parasite-virus co-infection case. In malaria-endemic regions, due to overlapping symptoms, suspected COVID-19 patients should also be monitored for diagnosis of malaria without any delay. The SARS-CoV-2 and co-infection could increase the disease severity in a short time span. In treatment, dexamethasone may not help in severe cases having malaria as well as COVID-19 positive status and needs further exploration.
在疟疾流行地区，人们常常同时接触多种病原体，从而出现合并感染的情况。在这种情况下，症状重叠给诊断带来了严峻挑战。诊断延迟可能导致疾病严重程度增加以及灾难性事件的发生。由严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）引发的2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行已经在全球范围内影响了各个地区，包括疟疾流行地区。而[此处原文缺失某种病原体名称]与SARS-CoV-2的合并感染及其对健康的影响尚未得到探索。我们报告了一例来自疟疾流行地区的既往健康的中年个体，该个体同时感染了SARS-CoV-2和[此处原文缺失某种病原体名称]。患者在短时间内出现了严重的疾病症状。患者表现出神经症状、血液学及肝功能检查参数改变，并在短时间内死亡。我们在此讨论该病例在治疗和血液学参数方面的各个情况。此外，我们还针对这一致命的寄生虫 - 病毒合并感染病例中病情严重程度和神经症状背后的机制提出了相关观点。在疟疾流行地区，由于症状重叠，疑似COVID-19患者也应立即接受疟疾诊断监测。SARS-CoV-2与[此处原文缺失某种病原体名称]的合并感染可能会在短时间内增加疾病的严重程度。在治疗方面，地塞米松对于同时患有疟疾且COVID-19检测呈阳性的重症病例可能无效，这需要进一步探索。
