• B Tejura, D A Sass, R A Fischer, I Daskal, and G Eiger.
• Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19141, USA.
• Am. J. Med. Sci. 2000 Nov 1; 320 (5): 337341337-41.

AbstractFalciparum malaria is frequently associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The use of exchange transfusion as a therapeutic modality for severe cases of malaria has been described previously. We describe a case of a 49 year-old African American gentleman with a history of hemoglobin-SC disease who presented with a severe case of Plasmodium falciparum malaria 3 weeks after having received an infected blood transfusion. His peripheral smear showed the presence of numerous intraerythrocytic ring forms and "banana-shaped" gametocytes with a high-grade parasitemia, estimated at 18%. He was treated with antimalarial chemotherapy and also underwent a 12-unit red blood cell exchange transfusion, decreasing his parasite load to < 1%, as determined on repeat smear. It is prudent to be aware of the efficacy of this adjunctive treatment, especially with ever-increasing travel and a resultant increase in the prevalence of tropical diseases in the United States.

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