Overweight and obesity as protective factors in severe falciparum Malaria

We conducted the study to determine if body mass index (BMI) could have any influence on severity of falciparum malaria. Severe (n = 196) (defined following World Health Organization criteria of 2015) and uncomplicated (n = 380) falciparum malaria patients were enrolled. Based on BMI criteria, the severe malaria group comprised 17% underweight, 70% normal weight, 9% overweight, and 4% obese patients, while in the uncomplicated malaria group the patients constituted 22%, 73%, 3%, and 2%, respectively. In both severe and uncomplicated malaria groups, significantly lower circulating parasite density and creatinine level were present in obese compared to patients in other BMI categories (p<0.05). Thus, obesity might be an indicator of reduced severity in falciparum malaria.