Haematological Aspects of Tropical Diseases

The increasing frequency of worldwide travel means that haematologists need to be aware of haematological manifestations of infections that occur predominantly in the tropics. They need to have an understanding of the differences in geographical prevalence as well as the presentation and treatment of these conditions. This chapter starts by introducing the ethic variations in reference ranges of various haematological parameters before discussing the haematological aspects of tropical diseases. It is divided into infections in which the organism can be found in the peripheral blood or bone marrow, and conditions which have secondary effects on haematological parameters. Some of the drugs used for the treatment of these tropical infections can have unwanted haematological side effects and these are considered alongside each infection.