Abstract
A 56-year-old man presented to a peripheral hospital in New Zealand with severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria with cerebral involvement and subsequently developed multi-system organ failure. Activated protein C was used in an attempt to stop the cascade of events into multi-organ failure. Severe infection with P. falciparum is life-threatening and appears to activate a hypercoagulable state similar to that of severe sepsis. Activated protein C is currently used in the treatment of severe sepsis and may provide a new adjuvant therapy for severe P. falciparum malaria.
MeSH terms
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Anti-Infective Agents / therapeutic use*
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Blood Coagulation Disorders / drug therapy
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Fibrinolytic Agents / therapeutic use
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Humans
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Malaria, Cerebral / blood
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Malaria, Cerebral / complications
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Malaria, Cerebral / drug therapy
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Malaria, Falciparum / blood
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Malaria, Falciparum / complications
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Malaria, Falciparum / drug therapy*
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Male
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Middle Aged
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Multiple Organ Failure / etiology
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Multiple Organ Failure / prevention & control
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Protein C / therapeutic use*
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Recombinant Proteins / therapeutic use
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Treatment Outcome
Substances
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Anti-Infective Agents
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Fibrinolytic Agents
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Protein C
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Recombinant Proteins
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drotrecogin alfa activated