Association between asymptomatic Plasmodium falciparum malaria infection, anaemia and mean corpuscular volume of school children in the Volta Region of Ghana

Background: Although, several studies have reported abnormal Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) values and anaemia associated with malaria infections with a focus on Plasmodium falciparum among patients with complicated and uncomplicated malaria, none has looked at the association with asymptomatic malaria. This study aimed to assess this association. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study using 3 mL of blood samples from 549 children aged 5 - 17 years attending 5 schools selected in the Volta Region. Semistructured questionnaires were administered to the children to obtain demographic data. Blood samples were collected to estimate the children ' s full blood count (FBC) and malaria status. Data obtained were analysed using STATA 15 software. P -values of less than 0.05 were considered statistically signi fi cant. Results: Most of the children in this study (49.9%) had normal MCV (81.3 - 91.3 fL) with an overall malaria prevalence of 55.6 % (95% CI: 51.3 - 59.8) and anaemia prevalence of 48.6% (95% CI 44.4 - 52.9). Most anaemic children had normal MCV (81.3 - 91.3 fL) (49.8, 95% CI 43.7 - 56.0). The predicted probability of malaria was highly likely among children with normal MCV (81.3 - 91.3 fL) but with high variability and uncertainty among those with low MCV (<81.3 fL) and high MCV (>91.3 fL). Conclusion: This study shows a reduced predicted probability of malaria among children with low and high MCV, playing a protective function against malaria. Further studies are required to elucidate the interaction.