Cerebral Malaria: A Review

Cerebral malaria is an important cause of malaria mortality worldwide. It occurs in 2% of patients infected by Plasmodium falciparum. It is a multisystem disease, with hepatic dysfunction, thrombocytopenia and coagulopathies. The neurologic signs, caused by diffuse involvement of the brain, are usually nonspecific. The pathogenesis of cerebral malaria may be explained by two mechanisms: capillaries blockage by infected red blood corpuscles, and potential cerebral toxicity by cytokines. MR imaging, which is rarely performed in cases of cerebral malaria, has disclosed cortical infarcts or lesions of the white matter.