Acute Pulmonary Edema in falciparum Malaria

Clinical and autopsy findings correlated in five patients with pulmonary edema due to acute falciparum malaria disclosed that the clinical illness was characterized by progressive deterioration, severe cerebral dysfunction, overt intravascular hemolysis and marked parasitemia. In all cases rapidly lethal pulmonary edema, unresponsive to vigorous therapy, occurred in the absence of detectable cardiac decompensation or fluid retention. This study suggests that abnormalities of the pulmonary microcirculation have a central role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary edema in malaria.