Table 1.
Comparison of performance between different malaria-diagnosis techniques
| Technique | Detectable parasite density (per µL) | Plasmodium species | Infected stage | Sensitivity (%) | Operation cost (per test) | Parasite enrichment | Heterogeneity | Operation time (per test) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stage dependence | Cell-size dependence | ||||||||
| Microscopy | 5–20 [47], 50–100 [27] | All species (depending on expertise) | All stages (depending on expertise) | Gold standard | $5000 for a microscope $0.12–$0.40 for a test [18] |
No | No | No | 30–60 min [41] |
| RDTs | |||||||||
| HRP-2 | >100 [48] | P. falciparum | No data available | 96.9 % [48] | $0.55–$1.50 [18] | No | No | No | ~20 min [41] |
| pLDH | >100 [48] | All species | No data available | 91.2 % [48] | $0.55–$1.50 [18] | No | No | No | ~20 min [41] |
| PCR | 1–5 [19] | All species (depending on the primer set) | All stages | ~100 % when density >5000/µL for P. falciparum and 500/µL for P. vivax [4] | $100 for a PCR thermal cycler $3.3 for a test [49] |
No | No | No | ~24 h [41] |
| DEP deformation [50] | No data available | P. falciparum | All stages | No data available | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | No data available | Yes | Depending on volume of sample |
| Electromagnet with wedge-shaped pole [51] | No data available |
P. vivax
P. malariae |
No data available |
20 % for P. malariae
25 % for P. vivax |
<0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6–12 h [51] |
| Magnetophoretic between stainless wool in a large chamber [52] | 5000 for 1st chamber and 50 for 2nd chamber (107 and 105/2 mL) | P. falciparum | Trophozoites and schizonts | No data available | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | Yes | Yes | ~15 min [52] |
| Magnetophoretic in a microchannel between two magnets [53] | No data available |
P. falciparum
P. vivax P. malariae P. ovale |
Trophozoites, schizonts, gametocyte | No data available | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Depending on volume of sample |
| Magnetophoretic between stainless wool in a commercial column tube [54] | 400 (107 per 25 mL) | P. falciparum | Trophozoites and schizonts | 95.7 % | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Depending on volume of sample |
| Magnetophoretic with magnet nanoparticles [55] | 30 | No data available | No data available | No data available | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | No data available | No data available | Depending on volume of sample |
| Magnetophoretic with ferromagnetic material [56] | No data available | P. falciparum | All stages | 99.2 % for late-stage iRBCs, 73 % for ring-stage iRBCs at optimal flow (0.14 μL/min) | <0.1$ per test (approx.) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Depending on volume of sample |
| Magnetic relaxometry detection [57, 58] | <10 [58] | P. falciparum | All stages | ~100 % | No | Yes | Yes | ~30 min | |
Remark: sensitivity is the probability of a positive test result for a patient with the disease