Question

Quartan malaria is due to
A. Plasmodium falciparum
B. Plasmodium vivax
C. Plasmodium ovale
D. Plasmodium malariae

Answer 1

Hint: Quartan malaria is one of the four types of malaria fevers. The characteristic feature of quartan fever is that it occurs in repeated phases with a gap of three days or 72 hours. Thus, the causing agent of quartan malaria is characterized by a developmental cycle longer than 72 hours.

Complete answer:
Quartan malaria is one of the four major malarial fevers. It is characterized by the onset of fever occurring in an interval of three-four days. Hence, it is called quatrain fever. Female Anopheles mosquito is the vector for transmission of quartan malaria. The causative agent of quartan malaria is Plasmodium malariae. It is much milder than the two critically dangerous malaria-causing species of P. falciparum and P. vivax. It causes moderate fever relative to the other two malaria-causing species. Also, P. malariae prefers infecting older erythrocytes and this results in earlier immunity development in the human host.

The quartan fever has non-specific flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle ache, uneasiness, fatigue, etc. the fever occurs every 72 hours which is due to a 72-hour long development cycle of the plasmodium P. malariae. Diagnostics for quartan fever are done by examination of peripheral blood films which are stained by Giemsa stain. PCR techniques are the most reliable diagnostic methods.
Plasmodium falciparum is the deadliest parasite species for humans. They cause severe malaria in humans. The vector is the same for this parasite that is female Anopheles. Plasmodium vivax also causes frequent and recurring malaria.

Hence, the correct answer for the cause of quartan fever is Plasmodium malariae, option D.

Note: The quartan fever is commonly confused with other malarial fevers. Thus, this makes its diagnosis difficult. Chloroquine is the most commonly used drug for its treatment. But preventive measures are strong control factors. Breeding sides of Anopheles mosquitoes should be destroyed.