Cottrell Gilles auteur aut IRD Deloron Philippe auteur aut IRD Fievet Nadine auteur aut IRD Sow S. auteur aut IRD Gaye O. auteur aut IRD Le Hesran Jean-Yves auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf born digital access Malarial infection during pregnancy leads to placental infection, a known risk factor for low birth weight. Whether the stage of pregnancy at infection has a differential influence on these effects is not clearly known, but may be of importance for prevention strategies, including intermittent preventive treatment of pregnant women. Malaria infection during early (before 20 weeks), middle (20-28 weeks), or late (after 28 weeks) pregnancy was evaluated by logistic regression and receiver operating characteristics analysis in relation to placental infection in pregnant Senegalese women. Plasmodium falciparum infections during late pregnancy are strongly related to placental infection, as well as those that occur in middle pregnancy. Knowledge of parasitological events over the entire duration of pregnancy permits a highly accurate prediction of placental infection. Not only malaria infections during late pregnancy increase the likelihood of placental infection. The current policy of intermittent preventive treatment of pregnant women, which implies an initial antimalarial cure after 20 weeks of pregnancy, will not avoid early infections. An earlier initiation of malaria prevention might improve its efficacy. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. specialized malaria pregnancy placental infection prevention strategy ROC analysis 052 98 3 255-260 2006 0001-706X https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010035739 10.1016/j.actatropica.2006.05.009 0001-706X [F B010035739] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010035739 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/intranet/publi/2006/09/010035739.pdf Accès réservé (Intranet de l'IRD) IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2006-10-06 2017-08-23 fdi:010035739 fre