Effects of placental malaria on mothers and neonates from Zaire

Of one hundred placentas collected consecutively in the Ubangi district, Zaire, 64 hadfalciparum malaria. Mothers and infants of the 64 malarious and 36 non-malarious placentas were compared. The malarious placentas had no consistent relationship to infant length or head circumference, APGAR score, birthweight, maternal anemia, splenomegaly or hydramnios. The rate of hydramnios, in fact, was higher in the mothers with non-malarious placentas. Mothers with malarious placentas were younger (\(\bar x\) 24) than mothers with non-malarious placentas (\(\bar x\) 29). Mothers with fewer pregnancies were more likely to have malarious placentas than older multiparous mothers. There were 7 stillbirths, 4 from mothers with malarious placentas. Infants born to mothers with malarious placentas averaged 100g less than those from mothers with non-malarious placentas. This study shows that mothers withfalciparum malaria from the Ubangi district deliver normal and apparently unaffected infants.