36 μl while in malaria patients the mean value of

AST 23.76 μl. The difference between AST value in normal and patients of each of malaria patients was non-significant (P > 0.47 μl). With reference to serum creatinine, the results show that the mean level of creatinine in serum of normal healthy subjects is 0.5033 mg/dl while in malaria patients the mean value of creatinine is 1.20 mg/dl. The difference between creatinine value in normal and patients of each of malaria patients was significant (P > 0.000349). As presented in results the slide positivity rate in present study is 22%. In the light of results of present study it seems that the low slide positivity rate as presented above may have been under estimated. Due to rush of work and sometimes due to lack of adequate facilities in district hospitals and selleck malaria control offices it is selleck chemicals possible to miss many positive cases. Whereas a reduced slide positivity rate reflects a declining trend. The present study shows that the prominent species infecting the people in our situation is P. vivax (92.8%). This is consistent with the results of other similar studies conducted for different areas of Karachi (Pakistan).

Rafi et al 5 reported that in their studies P. vivax was the predominant species. A similar study was also made in Quetta, Pakistan, by Azeem et al 6 In this study a total of 263018 subjects who were screened, the positive smears were 91679 (34.85%), of which P. falciparum was detected 28166 (30.72%) and P. vivax 61313 (66.87%), which show that malarial infection due to P. vivax is greater in Quetta, which is similar to our results. In our study we take 3500 malarial suspected patients of which 767 were positive slides showing 712 (92.8%) P. vivax and 55 (7.2%) P. falciparum, which is similar to the study. 6 They reported hepatocellular jaundice or the so called, malarial hepatitis with an incidence of approximately 2.6% from North–East India. Harris

et al found that 72% of patients with jaundice have direct bilirubinemia and elevated liver enzymes suggesting Histamine H2 receptor hepatocelluler damage. 2 Ashley et al 7 from Thailand reported an incidence of jaundice in 32% of falciparum malaria although the bilirubin level was predominantly conjugated. Similarly, Harris in South India found that 37% cases of falciparum malaria had hyper bilirubin. 2 Present study also shows that jaundice is more common in falciparum malaria as compared to its presence in vivax malaria. Hazra et al 8 found an association of jaundice in 40% and 9.09% cases with falciparum malaria, and P. vivax respectively, from Calcutta. A similar study of Kochar et al 9 also showed that bilirubin level increases due to malarial infection which causes malarial hepatitis. A study revealed that the plasma concentration of conjugated bilirubin (P < 0.02), that total bilirubin (P < 0.05) and the ratio between the two were all significantly (P < 0.01) higher in the 47 patients studied.