Malaria, immunity and mental disorders: A plausible relationship?

Abstract

Malaria is the most common and dangerous parasitic disease, being responsible every year for nearly half a million deaths, and an estimated 219 million clinical cases, globally [1]. The devastating short-term effects that an acute malarial infection can have on any given individual have been historically well characterized, and there are also abundant data on the subacute and chronic sequelae derived from severe malarial episodes, which are understandable in the context of the sudden and profound insult that such an aggressive infection may have in the central nervous system and other key organs.