Le paludisme congénital et néonatal en Afrique subsaharienne, un évènement rare ?

Summary: Background: Neonatal malaria is classicaly known to be rare in malaria endemic countries. However, reports increasingly suggest an underestimation of its true frequency. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of congenital and neonatal malaria in infants admitted in tertiary reference hospital in Mali using three complementary diagnostic methods. Methods: The study was conducted in neonatalogy unit of the pediatric ward of the teaching hospital Gabriel Toure in Bamako, Mali from October 1st 2006 to March 17th 2008. In-patient infants aged between 0 and 28days and their mothers were included. Malaria was diagnosed on infants and mothers venous blood using a rapid diagnostic test (RDT, OptiMAL IT®), light microscopy of thick smear and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: Overall 267 infants and 146 mothers were included. The mean age and weight of the infants were 2.7days and 2862.4g respectively. Light microscopy of thick smears and PCR amplification of parasite DNA were both negative in the infant population. Mothers had a mean age of 25years. Microscopy of thick smears was negative in all samples collected from these mothers while the RDT detected one case of Plasmodium falciparum and PCR detected seven cases of P. falciparum and two cases of P. ovale. Conclusion: Congenital and neonatal malaria remain of a rare occurrence in in-patients infants admitted in a tertiary reference hospital in Mali. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]