Congenital malaria in newborns delivered to mothers with malaria-infected placenta in Blue Nile State, Sudan
Abstract
Diagnosis of congenital malaria is complicated by the low density of the parasite circulating in the cord blood and/or the peripheral blood of the newborns. Molecular techniques are significantly more sensitive than blood smears in detecting low-level parasitemia. This study investigated the prevalence of congenital malaria by the use of the real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) in 102 babies born to mothers with microscopically confirmed infected placenta from Blue Nile state, Sudan. At delivery time, placental, maternal peripheral and cord blood samples in addition to samples collected from the newborns' peripheral blood were examined for malaria infection using Giemsa-stained thick smear and parasite DNA detection by real-time PCR. The overall prevalence of congenital malaria includes the total babies with cord blood parasitaemia and peripheral blood parasitaemia was 18.6 and 56.8% using microscopy and real-time PCR, respectively. Even though all the neonates were aparasitaemic by microscopy, 19 (18.6%) of the babies had congenital malaria detected by real-time PCR, 15 (25.9%) of the babies with congenital malaria were born to mothers with both placental and peripheral blood malaria infections detected using the two techniques. Congenital malaria was significantly associated with cord blood malaria infections, maternal age and maternal haemoglobin level (p < 0.001). This first study investigating congenital malaria in Blue Nile state, Sudan shows that malaria-infected placenta resulted in infant and cord blood infections.
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Tests with better sensitivity, such as molecular techniques, are required for CM.
“Therefore, tests with better sensitivity, such as molecular techniques, are required [6].”
From Diagnostic Accuracy of a Thick Blood Smear Compared to qPCR for Malaria Associated with Pregnancy in Colombia (2023) · cites this paper as [6]
Other studies have indicated that the diagnosis of CM is more complicated because it is an infection with low parasitic density in umbilical cord blood or peripheral blood of the newborn.
“Other studies have indicated that the diagnosis of CM is more complicated because it is an infection with low parasitic density in umbilical cord blood or peripheral blood of the newborn.”
From Diagnostic Accuracy of a Thick Blood Smear Compared to qPCR for Malaria Associated with Pregnancy in Colombia (2023) · cites this paper as [6]
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Cited by
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- Authors
- Omer, S. A., Adam, I., Noureldien, A., Elhaj, H., Guerrero-Latorre, L., Silgado, A., Sulleiro, E., & Molina, I.
- Affiliations
- Department of Immunology and Biotechnology, Tropical Medicine Research Institute, Khartoum, Sudan
- Qassim University (SA)
- University of Khartoum (SD)
- Microbiology Department, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ES)
- Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Omer, Samia A
- Venue
- Journal of Tropical Pediatrics
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2020-01-17
- Volume
- 66
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 428-434
- ISSN
- 0142-6338 (ISSN-L)
- 1465-3664
- OpenAlex
- W2999693693
- Cited by
- 16
- References
- 32
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 5 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 2
- FWCI
- 1.15
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- academic.oup.com/journals/pages/open_access/funder_policies/chorus/standard_publication_model (vor)
- Locations
- Journal of Tropical Pediatrics (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Vall d’Hebron Research Institute
- Samia A Omer fellowship of the fourth edition of Science by Women
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Malaria Research and Control
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Genetics › Hemoglobinopathies and Related Disorders
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Parasitology › Bird parasitology and diseases
- Keywords
- congenital malaria, placental malaria, neonatal malaria, maternal malaria infection, malaria prevalence, parasite DNA detection, real-time PCR, maternal age, maternal hemoglobin
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Fetal Blood, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Malaria, Male, Maternal Age, Mothers, Placenta, Plasmodium, Pregnancy, Prospective Studies, Sudan, Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic, Prevalence, Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical, Parasitemia, Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
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