Longitudinal studies of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in pregnant women living in a rural Cameroonian village with high perennial transmission

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2010 Nov;83(5):996-1004. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2010.10-0249.

Abstract

A prospective longitudinal study of Plasmodium falciparum in pregnant women was conducted in the rural village of Ngali II, where malaria is hyperendemic and individuals receive ~0.7 infectious mosquito bites/person/day throughout the year. Pregnant women (N = 60; 19 primigravidae, 41 multigravidae) were enrolled early in pregnancy (median 14 wk) and were followed monthly, with 38 women followed through term (5.7 ± 1.1 prenatal visits and delivery). The total number of times primigravidae were slide-positive during pregnancy was higher than multigravidae (3.3 ± 1.1 versus 1.3 ± 1.3 times; P < 0.001), but no difference in the number of polymerase chain reaction-positive cases (4.6 ± 1.7 and 3.4 ± 1.7 times, P = 0.106) or total genotypes they harbored (8.9 ± 3.2 and 7.0 ± 2.9) was found. Only 7.9% women developed symptomatic infections. All primigravidae and 38% multigravidae were placental malaria-positive at delivery (P = 0.009). Genotyping showed that 77% of placental parasites were acquired ≥ 30 wks in pregnancy. These results help identify the extent of malaria-associated changes women experience during pregnancy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Animals
  • Anopheles / physiology
  • Cameroon / epidemiology
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Malaria, Falciparum / drug therapy
  • Malaria, Falciparum / epidemiology*
  • Malaria, Falciparum / prevention & control
  • Malaria, Falciparum / transmission*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Plasmodium falciparum / isolation & purification
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Population Dynamics
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / drug therapy
  • Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / epidemiology*
  • Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / prevention & control
  • Prevalence
  • Rain
  • Seasons
  • Time Factors
  • Young Adult