Introduciton
Malaria is a potentially fatal disease spread to people by the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitos. Plasmodium is the parasite that causes malaria, and there are five different varieties that can infect people. Malaria threatens around 3.3 billion people, or half of the world's population, with the bulk of cases occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Malaria diagnostic tests for routine usage that are currently available
Because the symptoms of malaria infection can vary, it is critical that diagnostic approaches match the specific needs of each case. Each diagnostic tool's sensitivity, specificity, and limit of detection all have implications for how and in what setting that technique should be used.
Rapid diagnostic techniques for malaria antigen detection:
Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) are the most often utilised diagnostic approach in primary care settings, and they serve an important role in detecting probable malaria cases worldwide. Through lateral flow immunochromatography, antibodies are employed to detect one or more parasite-specific antigens, such as Plasmodium histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP-2) and Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH), within a blood sample.
For a variety of reasons, rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) have proven to be a useful tool in the identification of malaria. The test is very sensitive and specific, the technique is simple to use, and the findings are quick and simple to interpret. This suggests that the tests are appropriate for community-level health services in rural locations such as Sub-Saharan Africa. However, RTDs may miss malaria in individuals with low parasitaemia, and false positives are a risk due to cross reactivity or delayed HRP-2 clearance after therapy.
Malaria diagnostic challenges and considerations
Malaria primarily affects children under the age of five, and here is where the majority of deaths and illnesses occur. To reduce this mortality, timely malaria diagnosis and treatment are necessary, and high-quality diagnostics are essential.
Overall, several major difficulties continue to impede malaria diagnoses. Among these is the identification of asymptomatic carriers, which necessitates the use of highly sensitive malaria tests. In endemic situations, asymptomatic carriers are 4-5 times more common than symptomatic infections, indicating the need of targeting this population to reduce disease burden.
