A 28-year-old man from Ghana presents with fever. His thick film shows P. falciparum gametocytes but no asexual parasites. He was treated with ACT 10 ...

Question

A 28-year-old man from Ghana presents with fever. His thick film shows P. falciparum gametocytes but no asexual parasites. He was treated with ACT 10 days ago for confirmed P. falciparum malaria. What is the significance of gametocytes on the current film?

Accepted Answer

Gametocytes can persist in the blood for 2-3 weeks after successful treatment of asexual parasitaemia; their presence alone does not indicate treatment failure but does indicate ongoing infectivity to mosquitoes

Answer

Treatment failure - asexual parasites are being missed

Answer

He has been reinfected with a new strain

Answer

Gametocytes are an artefact and should be ignored

Answer

He needs a completely different antimalarial regimen

uk-dtmh MCQ (SBA): Post-treatment Gametocyte Persistence

A 28-year-old man from Ghana presents with fever. His thick film shows P. falciparum gametocytes but no asexual parasites. He was treated with ACT 10 days ago for confirmed P. falciparum malaria. What is the significance of gametocytes on the current film?