Table 5.
Characteristics of P. falciparum samples that were prozone positive or negative for Paracheck-Pf
| Samples with high parasitaemia (parasite density ≥ 4%) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prozone positive | Prozone negative | Total | p = * | ||
| n = 29 | n = 47 | n = 76 | |||
| Demographic and clinical data (expressed as % of total) | |||||
| Patients (n= 76) | Children < 5 years (n = 53) | 82.8 | 61.7 | 69.8 | NS |
| Children ≥ 5 years (n = 14) | 10.3 | 23.4 | 18.4 | NS | |
| Adults (> 14 years) (n = 9) | 6.9 | 14.9 | 11.8 | ||
| Gender ratio (n = 74) | Male/female | 40.7 | 57.4 | 51.4 | NS |
| Presenting symptoms | Fever (n = 64) | 96.3 | 97.3 | 96.9 | NS |
| Cough (n = 59) | 50.0 | 11.4 | 27.1 | 0.002 | |
| Vomiting (n = 60) | 28.0 | 45.7 | 38.3 | NS | |
| Diarrhoea (n = 60) | 28.0 | 45.7 | 30.0 | NS | |
| Clinical signs of severity | At least one (n = 60) | 64.0 | 48.6 | 55.0 | NS |
| Laboratory sign of severity | Haemoglobin < 5 g/dl (n = 76) | 20.7 | 6.4 | 11.8 | NS |
| Signs of severity | At least one clinical or laboratory (n = 61) | 69.2 | 54.3 | 60.7 | NS |
| Laboratory values (expressed as median and 95% CI) | |||||
| Parasite density in % (n = 76) | Median | 8.0 | 6.9 | 6.9 | NS |
| Range | 4.0-28.7 | 4.2-22.3 | 4.0-28.7 | ||
| Hemoglobin level (g/dl) (n = 76) | Median | 7.2 | 9.0 | 8.3 | 0.0074 |
| Range | 2.9-12.5 | 2.5-13.3 | 2.5-13.3 | ||
| RBC count (× 109/l) (n = 76) | Median | 3.1 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 0.0131 |
| Range | 1.1-5.3 | 0.9-5.3 | 0.9-5.3 | ||
| Platelet count (× 106/l) (n = 76) | Median | 74 | 90 | 86 | NS |
| Range | 12-488 | 13-390 | 12-390 | ||
| WBC count (× 106/l) (n = 76) | Median | 10.4 | 10.1 | 10.2 | NS |
| Range | 4.4-19.9 | 3.2-27.6 | 3.2-27.6 | ||
* NS = not significant