text_1: Patients with microcytosis and higher erythrocyte count were more resistant to severe malarial anaemia when infected with Plasmodium falciparum.
text_2: We estimated that the haematological profile in children homozygous for alpha(+)-thalassaemia reduces the risk of SMA during acute malaria compared to children of normal genotype (relative risk 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.24-1.12, p = 0.09).