Re-launch Of WHO Website For Malaria RDTs.

Main Category: Tropical Diseases
Article Date: 18 May 2007 - 12:00 PDT


The World Health Organization website on malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) (www.wpro.who.int/sites/rdt) has recently been updated to improve accessibility. The WHO is in the process of developing a product testing and prequalification programme for malaria RDTs to guide procurement, and is developing methods for quality assurance and recommendations for operational use in collaboration with the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics, USAID, AusAID and a network of research institutions in malaria-endemic and non-endemic countries. Maintenance of test quality will have a major bearing on the ability of organizations such as PSI to implement programmes to improve malaria case management at the end-user level.

As parasite-based diagnosis is now recommended for malaria case-management in adults, and in children in lower-endemic areas, RDTs are finding a rapidly increasing role in both the public and private sector. Although it is estimated that well over 30 million RDTs were used globally in 2006, most endemic countries have limited capacity to monitor and regulate diagnostic quality. The accuracy of RDT-based diagnosis is susceptible to poor practice in manufacturing, transport and storage, and use, and there are often limited alternatives available to anti-malarial therapy at a clinic level. It is therefore likely that the impact of RDTs on management is well below their potential, and may sometimes reduce the quality of care.

The WHO RDT website, a joint project of the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific, WHO/TDR and the WHO Global Malaria Programme, provides access to current WHO information and recommendations on RDTs including a list of manufacturers with evidence of quality manufacturing processes, publications to guide procurement and use of RDTs, and generic training and instruction material developed jointly with the Quality Assurance Project for use at a village health worker level.The site can be accessed through www.wpro.who.int/sites/rdt.

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