Hematological changes in malaria: A comparative study

Objectives: The hematological changes usually associated with malaria are well known. This study was conducted to estimate and compare the predominance & severity of hematological changes in common types of malaria. Methodology: This observational study included 400 suspected malarial patients attended in Out Patient Department (OPD) and In Patient Department (IPD) of NKP Salve Institute of Medical Sciences & Research Centre and Lata Mangeshkar Hospital Nagpur, during April 2009 to March 2011. The diagnosis of malaria was confirmed by thick and thin film stained with Leishman’s staining for malaria parasite and Antigen test (i.e. HRP2). Complete Blood Counts (CBCs) were performed using an automated SYSMEX machine. Results: Among the samples of consenting participants tested, 70% of the patient had thrombocytopenia, 94% anemia, 12% lymphopenia and 17% monocytosis. The incidence of thrombocytopenia was slightly more in P. Falciparum (58.69%) than P. Vivax (30.18%) cases, p value > 0.05, whereas there was no significant difference in the incidence of anemia in two groups (34.68% vs 33.82%) with p value > 0.05. However, lymphopenia was observed in 33.33% cases of P. Vivax as compared to 11.11% in P.Falciparum cases, p value < 0.04. Eosinophilia was 12.16% and basophil count was normal in both groups. Conclusions: P.Falciparum as well as P.Vivax can cause significant hematological changes with high incidence of thromboctopenia, anemia, lymphopenia and monocytosis.