Thrombocytopenia and its Severity in Plasmodium Vivax Positive Patients

Background: Plasmodium vivax, one of the four species of human malaria parasites, is responsible for a considerable portion of malaria cases. While P. vivax is often considered less severe than Plasmodium falciparum, it is not without its complications. Thrombocytopenia is a common hematological complication associated with malaria infections, including those caused by P. vivax. Objective: To evaluate the severity of thrombocytopenia and relationship between thrombocytopenia and demographic factors, such as age and gender, in Plasmodium vivax positive patients. Study Design: Cross sectional study. Settings: Medicine OPD of Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences / Jamshoro and Muhammad Medical College, Mirpur Khas Pakistan. Duration: Six months from May 2022 to October 2022. Methods: Individuals aged over 12 years of either gender with a confirmed diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax were included. A single blood sample was collected from each participant for platelet count analysis, and demographic details and platelet counts were recorded using standardized data collection forms. Thrombocytopenia was defined as a platelet count below a predetermined threshold (e.g., <150,000 platelets/μL). All the information was collected via study proforma and SPSS version 26 was used for the analysis. Results: The participants had a mean age of 29.07 years. 122 individuals (61.3%) were male, and 77 individuals (38.7%) were female. Thrombocytopenia was highly prevalent in patients with a positive diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax, with a frequency of 83.4%. Among the affected individuals, 18.6% had mild thrombocytopenia, 38.2% had moderate thrombocytopenia, and 25.6% were observed with severe thrombocytopenia. According to the thrombocytopenia and its severity based on age and gender the p-values of 0.069 and 0.656 indicates no significant association of age and gender with thrombocytopenia severity. Conclusion: Study revealed a significant frequency of moderate to severe thrombocytopenia in individuals diagnosed with Plasmodium vivax infection and tends to be of moderate to severe intensity, without significant correlation of age and gender.