Delayed cerebellar ataxia induced by Plasmodium falciparum malaria: A rare complication

• Published in: Clinical case reports Vol. 11; no. 10; pp. e8053 - n/a
• Main Authors: Siddig, Emmanuel Edwar, Misbah El-Sadig, Sarah, Eltigani, Hala Fathi, Musa, Ahmed Mudawi, Mohamed, Nouh Saad, Ahmed, Ayman
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-10-2023; John Wiley and Sons Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Alcohol; Antiparasitic agents; Ataxia; Case Report; Conflicts of interest; Consent; Critical Care Medicine; Cytokines; Cytomegalovirus; Editing; Fever; Infections; Infectious Diseases; Malaria; Neurology; Patients; Strategic planning; Tropical diseases; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Viral infections; West Nile virus; Writing; Sudan; critical care medicine; neurology; infectious diseases
• ISSN: 2050-0904; 2050-0904
• DOI: 10.1002/ccr3.8053

In endemic areas, malaria-induced cerebellar ataxia should be suspected in patients presenting with neurological disorders including slurred speech, tremors, and a sense of imbalance and dizziness while walking. Healthcare providers should be aware to properly investigate and early detect and manage infections associated with the development of cerebellar ataxia to improve the case management and clinical outcome cost-effectively.
Here, we report the clinical manifestations, investigations, and outcomes of a patient developed delayed cerebellar ataxia following a malaria infection: an unusual complication of the disease. This report highlights the diagnostic challenges in a country endemic with several infectious diseases, yet it has a limited diagnostic and surveillance capacity.