Malaria differential diagnosis

Malaria Microchapters
Home
Patient Information
Overview
Historical perspective
Classification
Pathophysiology
Causes
Differentiating Malaria from other Diseases
Epidemiology and Demographics
Risk Factors
Screening
Natural History, Complications and Prognosis
Diagnosis
History and Symptoms
Physical Examination
Laboratory Findings
Xray
Ultrasound
CT scan
MRI
Other Diagnostic Studies
Treatment
Medical Therapy
Primary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Cost-Effectiveness of Therapy
Future or Investigational Therapies
Case studies
Case #1
Malaria differential diagnosis On the Web
Most recent articles
Most cited articles
Review articles
CME Programs
Powerpoint slides
Images
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Malaria differential diagnosis All Images X-rays Echo & Ultrasound CT Images MRI
Ongoing Trials at Clinical Trials.gov
US National Guidelines Clearinghouse
NICE Guidance
FDA on Malaria differential diagnosis
CDC on Malaria differential diagnosis
Malaria differential diagnosis in the news
Blogs on Malaria differential diagnosis
Directions to Hospitals Treating Malaria
Risk calculators and risk factors for Malaria differential diagnosis

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: João André Alves Silva, M.D. [2]

Overview

Malaria must be differentiated from other diseases that cause fever, chills, nausea, anemia and vomiting, such as Ebola, Typhoid fever, Shigellosis and Lassa fever.

Differentiating Malaria from other Diseases

The table below summarizes the findings that differentiate Malaria from other conditions that cause fever and vomiting:

Disease	Findings
Ebola	Presents with fever, chills vomiting, diarrhea, generalized pain or malaise, and sometimes internal and external bleeding, that follow an incubation period of 2-21 days.
Typhoid fever	Presents with fever, headache, rash, gastrointestinal symptoms, with lymphadenopathy, relative bradycardia, cough and leucopenia and sometimes sore throat. Blood and stool culture can confirm the presence of the causative bacteria.
Shigellosis & other bacterial enteric infections	Presents with diarrhea, possibly bloody, accompanied by fever, nausea, and sometimes toxemia, vomiting, cramps, and tenesmus. Stools contain blood and mucous in a typical case. A search for possible sites of bacterial infection, together with cultures and blood smears, should be made. Presence of leucocytosis distinguishes bacterial infections from viral infections.
Lassa fever	Disease onset is usually gradual, with fever, sore throat, cough, pharyngitis, and facial edema in the later stages. Inflammation and exudation of the pharynx and conjunctiva are common.
Yellow fever and other Flaviviridae	Present with hemorrhagic complications. Epidemiological investigation may reveal a pattern of disease transmission by an insect vector. Virus isolation and serological investigation serves to distinguish these viruses. Confirmed history of previous yellow fever vaccination will rule out yellow fever.
Others	Viral hepatitis, leptospirosis, rheumatic fever, typhus, and mononucleosis can produce signs and symptoms that may be confused with Ebola in the early stages of infection.