Multi-method assessment of patients with febrile illness reveals over-diagnosis of malaria in rural Uganda.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Health clinics in rural Africa are typically resource-limited. As a result, many patients presenting with fever are treated with anti-malarial drugs based only on clinical presentation. This is a considerable issue in Uganda, where malaria is routinely over-diagnosed and over-treated, constituting a wastage of resources and an elevated risk of mortality in wrongly diagnosed patients. However, rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for malaria are increasingly being used in health facilities. Being fast, easy and inexpensive, RDTs offer the opportunity for feasible diagnostic capacity in resource-limited areas. This study evaluated the rate of malaria misdiagnosis and the accuracy of RDTs in rural Uganda, where presumptive diagnosis still predominates. Specifically, the diagnostic

SUBMITTER: Ghai RR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5015337 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature