Severe Plasmodium vivax malaria among sudanese children at New Halfa Hospital, Eastern Sudan

BACKGROUND: There are few published reports on severe Plasmodium vivax malaria in Africa. METHODS: Clinical pattern/manifestations of severe P. vivax were described in children admitted at New Halfa Hospital in Sudan between September 2009-December 2011. RESULTS: Eighteen children were admitted at the hospital during the study period with different manifestations of severe P. vivax malaria namely: severe anaemia (6, 33.3%), jaundice (5, 27.8%), thrombocytopenia (4, 22.2%), hypotension (3, 16.7%), cerebral malaria (2, 11.1%), epistaxis (2, 11.1%), renal impairment (1, 5.5%), hypogylcaemia and more than one manifestation (5, 27.8%). By day 2, all patients were asymptomatic, a parasitaemic and had started oral quinine and primaquine. There was no death among these patients CONCLUSION: Severe P. vivax malaria is an existing entity in eastern Sudan. Further studies are required to understand emergence of severe P. vivax malaria.