Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite. People with malaria often experience fever, chills, and flu-like illness.
Infection with malaria parasites may result in a wide variety of symptoms, ranging from absent or very mild symptoms to severe disease and even death. Malaria disease can be categorized as uncomplicated malaria or severe malaria (complicated). In general, malaria is a curable disease if diagnosed and treated promptly and correctly.
Uncomplicated Malaria
The classical (but rarely observed) malaria attack lasts 6-10 hours. It consists of
- a cold stage (sensation of cold, shivering)
- a hot stage (fever, headaches, vomiting; seizures in young children)
- and finally a sweating stage (sweats, return to normal temperature, tiredness).
More commonly, the patient presents with a combination of the following symptoms: fever, chills, sweats, headaches, nausea and vomiting, body aches, general malaise
Severe Malaria
Severe malaria occurs when infections are complicated by serious organ failures or abnormalities in the patient's blood or metabolism.
Nursing Diagnosis for Uncomplicated Malaria
- Hyperthermia related to the disease, characterized by a body temperature of clients more than 37.5 degrees Celsius, acral palpable warmth.
- Risk for fluid volume deficit related to active fluid output (vomiting, sweating, fever)
- Acute pain related to injury biological agent, characterized by a client complains of pain in the head, and pain in the body, the client looks grimace.
- Hypothermia related to the disease, characterized by the client looks chills, body temperature below 36.5 degrees Celsius, the client looks sweaty.
- Risk for imbalanced Body Temperature related to the disease.
- Nausea related to toxin (plasmodium infection in an area that affects the central nervous vomiting), characterized by clients complaining of nausea, anorexia.
- Fatigue related to energy imbalance, characterized by the client looks tired, the client looks sleepy.
- Risk for infection related to increased exposure to the environment.
Nursing Diagnosis for Severe Malaria
- Ineffective airway clearance related to airway obstruction (secretions), characterized by dyspnea, tachypnea.
- Ineffective breathing pattern related to hyperventilation, characterized by tachypnea, use of accessory muscles
- Damage related to gas exchange membrane changes alveoli characterized by abnormal AGD (metabolic acidosis), dyspnea
- Impaired Gas Exchange related to the obstructed artery flow, characterized by a client complained of dizziness, convulsi, seizures.
- Ineffective peripheral tissue perfusion related to damage to the transport of oxygen through the alveolar capillary membrane, characterized by acral felt cold, skin looks pale.
- Urinary retention related to barriers, characterized by patients complain urinate a little, dysuria, anuria.
