Background: Knowledge of severe malaria (SM) or complicated malaria is insufficient in all its components. The least known type is the one associated with Plasmodium vivax, compared to that caused by P. falciparum. The aim of this study was to provide a general overview of epidemiological information about the burden of SM, obtained from the National Public Health Surveillance System (SIVIGILA) for the period 2007-2020 in Colombia.
Methods: A descriptive, retrospective, and cross-sectional study of secondary information was performed via SIVIGILA.
Results: There were 9881 SM cases among 1,060,950 total malaria cases in Colombia in 2007-2020: 9.31 SM cases per 1000 malaria cases. During this period, there were 7145 SM cases due to the following species: Plasmodium vivax, 57.6%; P. falciparum, 38.6%; severe mixed malaria, 3.2%; and P. malariae, 0.6%. The most compromised organ systems are the hematological system (54.9%), the liver (9.1%), the kidneys (4.2%), the lungs (1.9%) and the brain (1.6%).
Conclusions: There has been a reduction in malaria incidence in Colombia in the last 10-15 years, but there has also been a strong increase in SM incidence. We suggest emphasizing the prevention of the onset of severe malaria, with the early and accurate diagnosis of plasmodial infection.
Keywords: Colombia; Plasmodium; Plasmodium vivax; incidence; malaria.