Diagnostic of Malaria
The malaria is easy enough to treat, but access to the most effective treatments remains inadequate. Over 95 per cent of all malaria deaths occur on the African continent. Impregnated mosquito nets are expensive and out of reach for many. The parasite which causes malaria is beginning to show resistance in parts of Asia to the most effective drug we have. And there are no new drugs in the development pipeline, meaning we could be left without effective options in the future.
Diagnosing malaria is done by using either a rapid diagnostic test or a microscope with a skilled laboratory person. A rapid diagnostic test uses blood from a finger prick and is relatively cheap and easy to perform—community health workers with no previous training can quickly learn to do them. In some areas neither test is available, so health workers must diagnose sick children based on symptoms alone - leading to over-diagnosis of malaria, while the real cause of the symptoms is left untreated.
