Benign tertian malaria--a misnomer?

Plasmodium vivax usually causes an acute self-limiting febrile illness with fever spikes on every third day and no complications or death. Therefore the illness caused by this parasite was termed benign tertian malaria. However, many complications associated with Plasmodium falciparum have been seen with increasing frequency with Plasmodium vivax in recent times. The present study highlights the various complications associated with Plasmodium vivax malaria.