[Clinical and laboratory profile of Plasmodium vivax malaria patients hospitalized in Apartadó, Colombia]

[[[ Introduction: ]]] Malaria is a public health problem in the Urabá region recording rates of infection above those of the Antioquia department. The burden of vivax malaria is 78.7% and the profile of vivax malaria in this region has scarcely been studied. [[[ Objectives: ]]] To analyze the clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients hospitalized for vivax malaria in Apartadó. [[[ Materials and methods: ]]] We reviewed the medical records of patients with vivax malaria hospitalized in the Antonio Roldán Betancur hospital from 2004-2007. Results. Of 359 patients with vivax malaria who required hospitalization, 23.1% (83/359 patients) had the following complications: severe anemia, 51.8% (43/83); severe thrombocytopenia, 15.6% (13/83); hyperbilirubinemia, 7.2 % (6/83). Some patients met several criteria for complicated malaria simultaneously, including one case of acute respiratory distress syndrome. The most significant laboratory changes were decreases in the hemoglobin, hematocrit and platelet levels, with increased levels of transaminases and bilirubin. Only 4.82% (4/83) of patients with complicated malaria were treated with intravenous quinine, no one died. [[[ Conclusions: ]]] The elevated frequency of complicated vivax malaria found in the Uraba region in this study is noteworthy, particularly in children under 5 years. The results highlight the need to strengthen, amongst the health staff, the knowledge of the guidelines for the clinical care of malaria patients, in order to make a correct clinical diagnosis and provide appropriate treatment.