Practical Implications of the Non-Linear Relationship between the Test Positivity Rate and Malaria Incidence.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The test positivity rate (TPR), defined as the number of laboratory-confirmed malaria tests per 100 suspected cases examined, is widely used by malaria surveillance programs as one of several key indicators of temporal trends in malaria incidence. However, there have been few studies using empiric data to examine the quantitative nature of this relationship.

Methods

To characterize the relationship between the test positivity rate and the incidence of malaria, we fit regression models using the confirmed malaria case rate as the outcome of interest and TPR as the predictor of interest. We varied the relationship between the two by alternating linear and polynomial terms for TPR, and compared the goodness of fit of each model.

Results

A total of 7,668 encoun

SUBMITTER: Boyce RM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4809590 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature