Relationship between Covid-19 and Malaria

While Covid-19 and Malaria may share similar symptoms but differ in modes of transmission and treatment.

According to a journal commissioned by Pan African Medical Journal on malaria and Covid-19 โ€˜commonalities, intersections and implications for sustaining malaria controlโ€™ Covid-19 exhibit similarities in clinical presentation and empirical treatment with malaria and they also share some pathophysiological characteristics which supports the overlap in clinical presentation.

โ€œThe similarities in high occurrence of Covid-19 and malaria in densely populated/urban slum and rural areas is attributed to poverty, poor infrastructure, poor access to health, limited health manpower and pre-existing comorbidities which favour high transmission of both diseases even though through different modes,โ€ read the journal.

The authors attribute that similarities in the clinical presentation of these two diseases constitute a danger both ways.

โ€œFever is a cardinal symptom of Covid-19 and malaria, caregivers are bound to get confused with choice/practice of self-medication for malaria with the advent and awareness of Covid-19.

โ€œMost deaths from severe malaria occur within the first 24 to 48 hours of symptoms occurring if not treated. The overlap of Covid-19 symptoms and malaria may lead to delay in treatment as a result of the testing guideline which has similar symptoms to malaria listed,โ€ according to the journal.

In addition, the International Journal of Infectious disease on โ€˜Covid-19 and Malaria: A symptom screening challenge for malaria-endemic countriesโ€™ also states that malaria shares some of the highly recognisable symptoms with covid-19 such as fever, difficulty in breathing, fatigue and headaches on acute onset.

โ€œThus, a malaria case may be misclassified as Covid-19 if symptoms alone are used to define a case during this emergency period and vice versa. Malaria symptoms appear within 10-15 days after an infective bite, multi-organ failure is common in severe cases among adults while respiratory distress is also expected in children with malaria, mimicking what is usually reported in patients with Covid-19,โ€ read the journal.

โ€œHuman travel history is also significant, like with Covid-19, when screening for a suspected case of malaria as well as means of curbing transmission. Also, both Covid-19 and malaria-infected individuals may be asymptomatic for a long time while transmitting the infections through their respective modesโ€.

Senzeni Ncube is an accomplished journalist based in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, with seven years of experience in hard news, investigative writing, fact-checking, and a keen focus on social development, mining,...

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