Taiwanese man dies of malaria after visiting Nigeria

Taipei, Dec. 12 (CNA) A Taiwanese man who returned from Nigeria in late November died from malaria earlier this month, the first malaria fatality in the country in 18 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Tuesday.

The individual was a Taiwanese businessman in his 50s, who visited Nigeria between mid-October and late-November, CDC Deputy Director-General Lo Yi-chun (羅一鈞) said at a weekly press briefing.

The man did not take medicine to prevent the disease, and developed a fever and chills two days after returning to Taiwan, Lo said.

CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said doctors first suspected the man had contracted septicemia, and transferred him to the emergency room for further treatment.

However, septicemia was eliminated as a possibility and the patient also tested negative for dengue fever and flu despite showing symptoms of thrombocytopenia, liver dysfunction and jaundice, Lin said.

According to Lin, doctors eventually focused on malaria as the businessman had been to Africa, and confirmed that he had contracted Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite, while also developing brain disease.

Although the man was given medication for malaria, his physical condition continued to deteriorate, and he died from multiple organ failure, hydrocephalus and septic shock six days after first showing the symptoms, Lin said.

Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳), deputy director of the Central Epidemic Command Center, said malaria can be spread to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes, and related symptoms are generally seen within seven to 30 days.

Humans can be infected with four kinds of malaria parasites: Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium malariae, Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium ovale, Lee said.

Early symptoms of malaria included fever, headache, muscle pain, arthralgia, nausea, vomiting and fatigue, she added.

Meanwhile, Lo said the fatality rate of malaria can be as high as 100 percent if one also develops cerebral malaria and does not receive proper treatment in time, adding that even when being treated, the fatality rate is still 15-20 percent.

According to CDC data, as of Dec. 11, Taiwan reported a total of five confirmed malaria cases this year, four of which were foreign nationals and one a Taiwanese, with all of them being imported cases.

The data shows that the infected individuals were between 20-50 years old, with two infected in Ethiopia, one in Ivory Coast, one in India and one in Nigeria.