Malaria and pregnancy: a Venezuelan approach. Review article

Abstract

Aim: to review and describe exhaustively the implications of malaria in pregnancy, including its maternal, fetal, and neonatal clinical manifestations and effects; immunopathology and pathophysiology; advancements in its diagnostics, histopathology, and treatment options; and epidemiology, particularly in Venezuela, a country where its data is almost non-existent. Methods: the information used to write this manuscript was obtained during a three-month period, between June and September 2022, from specialized literature, written in English and Spanish, related to malaria associated with pregnancy, mainly published during the last five years, using journals found in the most relevant medical digital archives, including PubMed, SciELO, Elsevier, Google Scholar, Latindex, and Cochrane Plus. Among the keywords used for obtaining this updated information were malaria; malaria in pregnancy; gestational malaria; placental malaria; congenital malaria. Results: all the clinical forms related to malaria in pregnancy, including gestational, placental, and congenital malaria, can cause maternal-fetal alterations, that, in case of progressing, could lead to the death of this binomial. Their pathophysiology and immunopathology can explain the gestational and fetal symptomatology, as well as their complications, depending on the parasite form that affected them. There are new updates regarding the diagnostics, prevention, and treatment of this medical entity. Conclusion: it is imperative to exalt the relevance of studying this disease in pregnant patients, especially in the Venezuelan topography, a focus of infection with a plethora of cases of said entity, whose lack of updated epidemiological data, regarding its prevalence and incidence, is profoundly preoccupying. Pregnant patients are not only one of the most vulnerable risk groups of this parasitosis, but also have the capacity of duplicating the risk of infecting the fetus.