Demographic, hematologic and clinical characteristics of study participants.

Clinical and laboratory data from 75 symptomatic malaria patients and apparently healthy controls had been previously reported [23] and here are combined with additional subjects living in the same areas. Data are expressed as median (interquartile range) unless stated otherwise and compared across three to five groups with Kruskal-Wallis tests (continuous variables) or χ2 tests (proportions); P values for this comparison across groups are presented in the right-hand column. Only when comparisons across groups showed statistical significance, further pairwise comparisons were made using Mann-Whitney tests (continuous variables) or χ2 tests (proportions). Values with different superscripts across a row indicate pairwise comparisons with statistical significance at the 5% level. The same value may have more than one superscript. When pairs of values across a row share one superscript (either the only or one of the superscripts associated with them), no statistically significant difference was found. Anemia was defined when hemoglobin concentration was below the following cut-off values: 120 g/l for adolescents aged 12–14 years and non-pregnant women, and 130 g/l for men aged ≥ 15 years. Thrombocytopenia was defined when the platelet count was below 150×109/l.*Number of subjects = 27 for hemoglobin measurements and platelet counts.§Number of subjects = 11 for hemoglobin measurements and platelet counts.