You can try these mentioned Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) regarding malaria disease. You can find right answers with explanations for some of these questions at the end of this blog.
MCQ Malaria 1. Which is the infective form of the malaria parasite?
a. Oocyst
b. Sporozoite
c. Bradyzoite
d. Tachyzoite
MCQ Malaria 2. Trophozoites, schizonts, and gametocytes of all the malarial parasites are seen in the peripheral blood smear except;
a. P. falciparum
b. P. malariae
c. P. ovale
d. P. vivax
MCQ Malaria 3. Blackwater fever is a special manifestation of malaria caused by;
a. P. falciparum
b. P. malariae
c. P. ovale
d. P. vivax
MCQ Malaria 4. After sporozoite gain entrance to the human body, it undergoes a developmental cycle first in the liver than in RBC, only after which fever is seen. This incubation period varies between plasmodium species, and ………….. species has the longest incubation period.
a. P. falciparum
b. P. malariae
c. P. ovale
d. P. vivax
MCQ Malaria 5. Which of the following statement(s) regarding Plasmodium falciparum are true?
a. causes more severe disease in pregnancy
b. is associated with recurrent relapses after initial treatment because of liver hypnozoites
c. is the only malarial parasite causing greater than 20% parasitemia
d. infection is typically associated with thrombocytopenia
e. is the only cause of cerebral malaria
MCQ Malaria 6. Mosquitoes is/are the vector in the following disorder(s)
a. Onchocerciasis
b. Visceral leishmaniasis
c. African trypanosomiasis
d. Bancroftian filariasis
MCQ Malaria 7. Which of the following statement(s) regarding vivax malaria is (are) true
a. may be complicated by anemia
b. may be complicated by jaundice
c. in a traveler may present more than six months after exposure
d. is sensitive to chloroquine
e. may co-exist with falciparum malaria in the same patient
MCQ Malaria 8. Crescent-shaped or banana-shaped gametocytes are seen in infection with:
a. Plasmodium vivax
b. Plasmodium falciparum
c. Plasmodium ovale
d. Plasmodium malariae
MCQ Malaria 9: Match the following dots with the Plasmodium species in which it is prominently seen.
| a. Maurer’s dots | I Plasmodium vivax |
| b. Schüffner’s dots | II Plasmodium falciparum |
| c. Ziemann’s dots | III Plasmodium ovale |
| d. James’ dots | IV Plasmodium malariae |
a. a-I, b-II, c-IIII, d-IV
b. a-II, b-I, c-IV, d-IIII
c. a-III, b-II, c-IV, d-I
d. a-II, b-I, c-IV, d-IIII
MCQ Malaria 10: A clinical situation in which immune system or a therapy failed to eliminate all the Plasmodium spp infected erythrocytes and numbers of Plasmodium spp in RBCs begin to increase again with subsequent clinical symptoms is called;
a. Latency
b. Re-infection
c. Relapse
d. Recrudescence
Keys with explanations
- Answer: b. sporozoite During a blood meal, a malaria-infected female Anopheles mosquito inoculates sporozoites into the human host. Sporozoites infect liver cells and start liver schizogony.
- Answer: a. (Plasmodium falciparum)
Explanation: Schizogony occurs inside the capillaries of the internal organs (spleen, liver, and bone marrow) hence only the ring form (but not the growing trophozoites and schizonts) are found in the peripheral blood - Answer: a. P. falciparum
Explanation: Blackwater fever (BWF) is a severe clinical syndrome, characterized by intravascular hemolysis, hemoglobinuria (with the passage of black urine), and acute renal failure caused by a variety of factors in patients with P. falciparum infestation. - Answer:b (P. malariae)
Explanation: Benign quartan (with a fever every 3rd day) malaria is caused P. malariae whereas benign tertian (with a fever every 2nd day) is caused by P. vivax and P. ovale and malignant tertian is caused by P falciparum. - Answer: Options a, c and d are correct.
Explanation: Hypnozoite is responsible for the relapse of malaria in P. vivax and P. ovale infections. Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium malariae do not have a dormant liver stage. Usually, cerebral malaria is caused by P. falciparum, and rarely, cerebral malaria occurs during the course of P. vivax infection. - Answer: d (Bancroftian filariasis)
Explanation: Vector of onchocerciasis is blackfly (Simulium damnosum) whereas that of visceral leishmaniasis is sand fly (Phlebotomus argentipus). Trypanosomiasis is transmitted by a blood-sucking insect, tsetse fly. - Do it yourself.
- b. Plasmodium falciparum
- b. a-II, b-I, c-IV, d-IIII Schüffner’s dots are seen in P.vivax, Ziemann’s stipplings are seen in P. malariae, Maurer’s clefts are seen in P. falciparum and James’ dots or James’ stippling are seen in P. ovale. (In some books you can see P. ovale contains Schüffner’s dots, but these dots are larger and darker than in P. vivax).
- d. Recrudescence. Recrudescence occurs when the infection has persisted in the blood at undetectable levels and then becomes detectable again.
Test your understanding in Parasitology. Try our dedicated MCQ Quiz section for Parasitology.
