Table 2. Baseline characteristics of n = 22 splenectomy patients in Papua, Indonesia.
| Parameters | All splenectomy patients n = 22 | Subgroups | *P. vivax vs P. falciparum subgroup comparison p-value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asymptomatic P. vivax n = 7 | Asymptomatic P. falciparum n = 13 | Asymptomatic mixed P. vivax-P. falciparum n = 1 | Uninfected control n = 1 | |||
| Age in years (median [IQR]) | 24.5 (18.3–36.8) | 25 (19–36) | 20 (15.5–39.5) | 28 | 32 | 0.47 |
| Sex (n/N of males, [%]) | 15/22 (68.2) | 4/7 (57.1) | 9/13 (69.2) | 1 (100) | 1 (100) | 0.65 |
| Ethnicity (n/N of Papuans, [%]) | 15/22 (68.2) | 4/7 (57.1) | 10/13 (76.9) | 1 (100) | 0 | 0.61 |
| Splenectomy due to trauma (n/N, %) | 20/22 (90.9) | 6/7 (85.7) | 12/13 (92.3) | 1 (100) | 1 (100) | 0.65 |
| Splenectomy due to splenomegaly (n/N, %) | 2/22 (9.1) | 1/7 (14.3) | 1/13 (7.7) | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Body temp. in °C (median [IQR]) | 36.5 (36.2–36.8) | 36.5 (36–36.9) | 36.4 (36.2–36.8) | 36.2 | 36.8 | 0.57 |
| Peripheral RDT (n/N of positive [%]) | 6/21 (28.6) | 0 | 6/13 (46.2) | 0 | 0 | 0.052 |
| Peripheral microscopy (n/N of positive [%]) | 9/22 (40.9) | 1/7 (14.3) | 8/13 (61.5) | 0 | 0 | 0.070 |
| Spleen blood microscopy (n/N of positive [%]) | 13/22 (59.1) | 3/7 (42.9) | 10/13 (76.9) | 0 | 0 | 0.17 |
| Spleen histology (n/N of positive [%]) | 15/17 (88.2) | 6/6 (100) | 9/10 (90) | - | 0 | 0.44 |
| Peripheral blood PCR (n/N of positive [%]) | 17/21 (81.0) | 7/7 (100) | 9/12 (75) | 1 (100) | 0 | 0.16 |
| Spleen PCR (n/N of positive [%]) | 21/22 (95.5) | 7/7 (100) | 13/13 (100) | 1(100) | 0 | - |
| Treated with antimalarials in the last month (n/N, [%]) | 4/22 (18.2) | 1/7 (14.3) | 4/13 (30.8) | 0 | 0 | 0.61 |
| Treated with antimalarials after surgery (n/N, [%]) | 17/22 (77.3) | 5/7 (71.4) | 11/13 (84.6) | 1 (100) | 0 | 0.49 |
| First infection in the next 12 months with P. vivax (n/N, [%]) | 11/18 (61.1) | 5/5 (100) | 5/11 (45.5) | 1 (100) | 0 | 0.043 |
| First infection in the next 12 months with P. falciparum (n/N, [%]) | 3/18 (16.7) | 0 | 3/11 (27.3) | 0 | 0 | 0.51 |
IQR, interquartile range; RDT, rapid diagnostic test.
*Continuous variables were compared using the Mann–Whitney test, and categorical variables using the chi-squared test or Fisher exact test. P value <0.05 considered statistically significant.