Plasmodium malariae in the Colombian Amazon region: you don’t diagnose what you don’t suspect

Malaria Journal

Research

Carlos Arturo Rodríguez-Celis¹  Juan Ricardo Cubides²  Paola Andrea Camargo-Ayala²  Lizeth Sánchez-Suárez²  Carlos Hernando Niño²  Teódulo Quiñones²  Moisés Tomás Cortés-Castillo²  Manuel Alfonso Patarroyo³  Ricardo Sánchez⁴  Manuel Elkin Patarroyo⁴ 

[1] Gobernación del Amazonas, Calle 10 # 10-77, Leticia, Colombia;Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Fundación Instituto de Inmunología de Colombia (FIDIC), Cra. 50 # 26-20, Bogotá, Colombia;Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Fundación Instituto de Inmunología de Colombia (FIDIC), Cra. 50 # 26-20, Bogotá, Colombia;School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Carrera 24#63C-69, Bogotá, Colombia;Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Fundación Instituto de Inmunología de Colombia (FIDIC), Cra. 50 # 26-20, Bogotá, Colombia;School of Medicine, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Avenida Carrera 30 # 45, Bogotá, Colombia;

关键词: Malaria;    Thick blood smear;    Microscopy;    Nested PCR;    Colombian Amazon region;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12936-016-1629-3

 received in 2016-08-24, accepted in 2016-11-21,  发布年份 2016

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundMalaria is a worldwide public health problem; parasites from the genus Plasmodium spp. are the aetiological agent of this disease. The parasite is mainly diagnosed by microscope-based techniques. However, these have limited sensitivity. Many asymptomatic infections are sub-microscopic and can only be detected by molecular methods. This study was aimed at comparing nested PCR results to those obtained by microscope for diagnosing malaria and to present epidemiological data regarding malaria in Colombia’s Amazon department.MethodsA total of 1392 blood samples (taken by venepuncture) from symptomatic patients in Colombia’s Amazon department were analysed in parallel by thick blood smear (TBS) test and nested PCR for determining Plasmodium spp. infection and identifying infecting species, such as Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium malariae and/or Plasmodium falciparum. Descriptive statistics were used for comparing the results from both tests regarding detection of the disease, typing infecting species and their prevalence in the study region. Bearing the microscope assay in mind as gold standard, PCR diagnosis performance was evaluated by statistical indicators.ConclusionThe present study revealed great differences between both diagnostic tests, as well as suggesting high P. malariae prevalence from a molecular perspective. This differed profoundly from previous studies in this region of Colombia, usually based on the TBS test, suggesting that diagnosis by conventional techniques could lead to underestimating the prevalence of certain Plasmodium spp. having high circulation in this area. The present results highlight the need for modifying state malaria surveillance schemes for more efficient strategies regarding the detection of this disease in endemic areas. The importance of PCR as a back-up test in cases of low parasitaemia or mixed infection is also highlighted.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2016