Anyhow, as Lisa put it in her post I was the lucky host of P. falciparum (click here for the wiki link) Malaria parasites, contracted as best we can tell at the Tiki bar in camp in the last 21 days. Why me you ask? Because I was lazy with prevention, the blame lies solely with me. Like most expats that do a lot of time here you grow very comfortable with the fact that you have not contracted malaria in your time here. As we are not short term visitors, medically, it is inadvisable to continue taking anti-malarial drugs past 3 months and simply practice prevention through long pants, shoes, and spray during the ~1.5-2 hours a day that you are at risk (6PM-8PM) of bite. So wearing shorts, flip flops, and sitting outside during that time frame at the Tiki bar for the last 20 months on a regular basis it was really just a roll of the dice.
You see, Malaria isn't something that the mosquito acquires naturally as part of it's lifecycle. Mosquitoes actually have to bite someone else infected with Malaria and then bite you in order to infect you. The parasite itself actually lives in the saliva of the mosquito(yum) rather than the blood and is transferred with the initial bite. So to be infected you have to a)be out and about when the particular type of mosquito can be due to temperature/humidity b)be exposed and not wearing spray c)get bitten by the exact type of mosquito that can carry d)said mosquito must have bitten someone who was infected with Malaria within it's short 1 month lifespan e)within 2KM since they are only able to travel that far at a maximum during their lifespan. Add on top of that the fact that there have been no expat infections in the camp in months (I am one of 5 ever to get it from our expat community) and I won the Malaria lottery! Somehow I don't feel so lucky. Is this how the powerball winners feel? Hmm..
Anyway, treatment was pretty simple for those curious, I was admitted, tested, confirmed, and put on the following:
- 2 x daily x 3 days - 4x50mg Coartem (link)
- 2 x daily x 5 days - 1x50mg Doxycycline (link)
- Large amounts of oral & intra-muscular anti-inflammatories/pain killers to treat the symptoms (fever, headache, chills)
- Daily blood tests confirming organ function & parasite levels
- 12 x daily blood pressure, temperature, and blood oxygen level checks (these are fun at 2AM)
- Copious amounts of complaining to Lisa and milking every bit of sympathy I could (thanks dear)
Coartem is pretty neat, it's a combination of drugs that kills the parasite and the first approved by the FDA for use in the United States in '09. Very effective, quite "light" in terms of it's impact & side effects and actually tastes oddly like a fruit candy rather than the horrible tinny flavour of Doxycycline. Common side effects include Anorexia (SCORE!), death, and something else I didn't read. Kidding about the death bit.
Anyway, last blood test yesterday confirms I have no parasite levels in my blood. Minor symptoms including my current headache and temperature fluctuations are common for the next couple of weeks. Long term I can expect anything from full blown recurrence(low chance of that) to never having an issue again. I am told my immune system will actually actively kill P. Falciparum parasites should I be bitten again in the next ~4 months, but going to do my best to not test that theory.
Thanks to all for the love, support, and messages - they are definitely appreciated. Thanks also to Lisa for being totally awesome and sitting in my wonderful hospital room for 3 days whilst I enjoyed providing the utmost hospitality to Malaria.
Cliff's Notes:
- Had Malaria, it sucked
- Cured (hopefully)
- Am not a walking disease vector (for Malaria anyway)
More reading if you aren't suitably terrified:
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