Which disease is described by cycles of fever and chills after recent travel, with splenomegaly and anemia?

Which disease is described by cycles of fever and chills after recent travel, with splenomegaly and anemia?

• A. Malaria
• B. Dengue fever
• C. Typhoid fever
• D. Plague

Answer: (A)

Malaria. The recurring fever and chills come from the parasite’s synchronized destruction of red blood cells during the blood-stage cycle, which produces fever at regular intervals after the initial liver stage. Travel to malaria-endemic areas points to exposure to Plasmodium species carried by Anopheles mosquitoes. As the parasite multiplies in red blood cells, anemia develops from hemolysis, and the spleen enlarges from the immune system’s effort to clear infected cells and sequestration. This combination—periodic fever, anemia, and splenomegaly after travel to an endemic region—is classic for malaria. Other illnesses like dengue, typhoid, or plague lack this characteristic fever pattern plus the combination of anemia and splenomegaly.

Malaria. The recurring fever and chills come from the parasite’s synchronized destruction of red blood cells during the blood-stage cycle, which produces fever at regular intervals after the initial liver stage. Travel to malaria-endemic areas points to exposure to Plasmodium species carried by Anopheles mosquitoes. As the parasite multiplies in red blood cells, anemia develops from hemolysis, and the spleen enlarges from the immune system’s effort to clear infected cells and sequestration. This combination—periodic fever, anemia, and splenomegaly after travel to an endemic region—is classic for malaria. Other illnesses like dengue, typhoid, or plague lack this characteristic fever pattern plus the combination of anemia and splenomegaly.