Point-of-Care Strategies Applied to Malaria Diagnosis

Abstract

Rapid and specific diagnosis of malaria remains one of the main strategies to fight the disease. The diagnosis is made primarily by the simple and low-cost thick drop technique, considered the gold standard test. However, the requirement for good quality microscopes and well-trained personnel often lead to inaccurate diagnosis, especially in cases of mixed infections or low parasitemia. Although PCR-based tests can help in these situations, this technique requires large and sensitive equipments, being unsuitable for point of care (POC) settings. A myriad of POC diagnostic tests have being developed in the last years, relying on molecular methods but also on novel strategies. New platforms, miniaturization techniques, and multiplexing possibilities promise great potential to improve disease diagnostics through fast and accurate detection of cases, even at remote places. Here, we will address the main POC strategies developed for the diagnosis of malaria, highlighting their strengths and weakness as POC applications.

Diagnostic Performance of Plasmodium falciparum Histidine-Rich Protein-2 Antigen-Specific Rapid Diagnostic Test in Children at the Peripheral Health Care Level in Nanoro (Burkina Faso)

“…The majority of malaria RDTs are based on the detection of histidine-rich protein-2 (Pf HRP2), which is specific to Plasmodium falciparum, or the Plasmodium-specific parasite lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH), either alone or in combination with Pf HRP2. Malaria RDTs are easy to implement at the point-of-care, provide results rapidly, and require no specific training and equipment [2]. However, the performance of these RDTs, and consequently the effectiveness of malaria-control programs, is more and more challenged with increasing numbers of field studies reporting the reduced specificity of the Pf HRP2-based RDTs [3][4][5][6].…”