Estimating parasite density in patients suffering from Falciparum malaria in an endemic area in Kolkata

Abstract

Parasite density of one hundred patients suffering from falciparum malaria in an endemic area in Kolkata was determined using three different methods. In the first of these, parasite density per microlitre of blood in a patient was determined using parasite count adjusted by average WBC count (i.e. 8000/μl) observed in microscopic fields of the thick film. In the remaining two methods, only raw (i.e. unadjusted) parasite counts in microscopic fields of the same slide were used. A statistical analysis was carried out in detail to compare these methods based on raw and adjusted parasite counts and also to find out a suitable method which can be used in practice. Estimating the density of parasites is of primary importance in determining the severity of infection. Furthermore, parasite density can help in identifying short-treatment and long-treatment failure vis-a-vis detection of development of resistance in P falciparum against the drug used. This article reports some findings that indicate the existence of a potentially dangerous situation in the study area.