5 Common Symptoms Of Malaria Every Nigerian Should Know

Malaria is a dangerous disease that can be as a result of an infection

that is transmitted by mosquito bites. The parasite, once it enters

the bloodstream,

travels and infects blood cells. Symptoms range from simple chills to

a life threatening

coma.



The first and most prevalent

symptom is a fever, accompanied by chills,

headache, muscle pain, nausea, and sweating. While these are common

symptoms for many different illnesses, including the flu, and any

other viral or bacterial infection, it is also

indicative of malaria.



Since these are ordinary side effects, they are often the most

ignored. A slight fever could be neglected with the thought that it's

"just a fever," while in truth it's an indicator of malaria. More

severe than the fever and

chills is jaundice, which is the

inflammation of the liver.





Jaundice is accompanied by

yellowing of the skin, and the

eyes, which is a result of high levels of the bilirubin in the

blood. Jaundice can be the

result of many other illnesses, including cancer, or hepatitis.



Jaundice is, however, one of

the most obvious symptoms of malaria. In the case of malaria, it is a

symptom that can only be treated along with the illness.



Because jaundice needs to be

treated immediately,

diagnostic tests are conducted to determine the exact cause of the

jaundice, and in this process, malaria could possibly

be identified. Seizures are another side

effect of malaria. Some

seizures are unidentifiable, as they result in "staring spells," while

others are accompanied

by spasms, convulsions, or shaking of the body. Seizures

are hard to identify

immediately with malaria, but

only immediate medical

attention can help determine

exactly what is causing the seizures. Anemia may also point to

malaria, especially in areas

where malnutrition is high, as

this can be a result. Anemia is

the condition in which there

are not enough red blood cells in the body. This can be due to

any kind of a dietary

deficiency, so it's hard to

attribute this just to malaria. Finally, comas are an extremely

obvious symptom of malaria.

Comas can also be a result of

anything; for a coma to come

about, the patient has to have

exhibited other symptoms first. Similar to the other side

effects, comas are not

exclusively associated with

malaria. They can be a result of

many other illnesses, and

nothing but a proper diagnostic test can help determine

whether it is truly caused by

malaria. In all these cases, a diagnostic

test normally consists of a

blood test to determine

whether there are any

bacterial, viral, or fungal

infections in the blood. Normally, malaria is easily

identifiable in these blood

tests, and treatment can begin

immediately. In areas without

proper healthcare, however,

this diagnosis and treatment process can take long, and that

is why prevention is the first

step in defeating malaria



Credicts:Borgenproject