Diagnosis of malaria in pregnancy: A comparison of microscopy with rapid diagnostic tests

Sarah I. Umeh, Chika Paulinus Enwuru and Richard C. Egbuobi

Microbiology Research International
Published: November 26 2013
Volume 1, Issue 3
Pages 35-39

Abstract

Malaria in pregnancy in Nigeria is a serious life threatening infection to the pregnant mother and the fetus. A study was conducted to test the effectiveness of rapid diagnostic tests in the parasitological diagnosis of malaria in pregnant women in the absence of reliable microscopy facilities. Blood samples of 500 pregnant women were tested for malaria parasite by Giemsa stained smear and Malaria Pf^(R) rapid diagnostic test (RDT). Thirty percent of the samples were positive by microscopy while 27% were positive by the RDT. The younger pregnant women (20 to 25 years) and women in the second trimester of pregnancy (13 to 24 weeks) have more malaria prevalence than other age groups. The sensitivity of the Malaria Pf test was 86.7%, the specificity was 98.6%. The positive predictive value was 96.3% and the negative predictive value was 94.5%. In the absence of good quality microscopy facilities, and experienced laboratory personnel, the Malaria Pf test should be employed as a viable alternative to ensure a reliable parasite based diagnosis of malaria in pregnant women for prompt and accurate treatment.

Keywords: Malaria, pregnancy, Plasmodium falciparum, rapid diagnostic tests.

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