Abstract
In the study reported here, the diagnostic performance of two new rapid tests for the diagnosis of malaria was evaluated in symptomatic patients in a non-endemic area. Of 557 consecutive patients, 109 (19.6%) had documented malaria. For the NOW ICT MALARIA P.f./P.v. (Binax, Portland, ME, USA) and OptiMAL IT (Diamed, Cressier, Switzerland) tests, respectively, sensitivity values were 96.3% and 79.8% (P-value, 0.0001), and specificity values were 98.8% and 98.4%. The NOW ICT test did not detect two of 80 Plasmodium falciparum infections, and it generated false-positive results for five patients. The OptiMAL IT test failed to detect ten of the P. falciparum infections, and it generated seven false-positive results. The results suggest that these rapid diagnostic tests for malaria may be useful, but they cannot replace microscopic examination of blood films.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Laboratoires Fumouze (Levallois Perret, France) for providing the NOW ICT MALARIA P.f./P.v. reagents and Laboratoires Diamed (Cressier, Switzerland) for the OptiMAL IT reagents. All experiments conducted in the study comply with the current laws of France.
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De Monbrison, F., Gérome, P., Chaulet, J.F. et al. Comparative diagnostic performance of two commercial rapid tests for malaria in a non-endemic area. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 23, 784–786 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-004-1202-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-004-1202-9