Treatment Failure and Post‐Artesunate Delayed Haemolysis in a Returned Traveller From Uganda With Partially Drug‐Resistant Severe Plasmodium falciparum Malaria
Abstract
ABSTRACT A man aged in his 40s, recently returned from Uganda, was hospitalised with Plasmodium falciparum malaria, with hyperparasitaemia of ~1.5 × 10 6 parasites/μL (26%). He received intravenous artesunate followed by artemether–lumefantrine. However, parasite clearance was delayed, and despite a negative blood film following treatment, the patient was readmitted 3 weeks later with recurrent parasitaemia. Further testing for drug‐resistant phenotypes and genotypes demonstrated reduced susceptibility to lumefantrine, an A675V mutation in the pfk13 gene and increased ring‐stage survival, consistent with partial artemisinin resistance. The case highlights the high risk of P. falciparum treatment failure in patients with hyperparasitaemia and partial drug resistance.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Malaria Research and Control
Parasites and Host Interactions
Calpain Protease Function and Regulation
Publication details
- Journal / source
- The Medical Journal of Australia
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Volume
- 224
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- e70136–e70136
- Publication date
- 1 January 2026
- Language
- EN