Abstract
BackgroundSchistosomiasis or bilharzia is one of the neglected tropical diseases affecting over 230 million people globally. In Zambia, the infection poses as one of the major public health burdens among parasitic infections. The diagnosis of schistosomiasis in endemic countries is still a challenge. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Schistosoma immunochromatographic (ICT) IgG–IgM rapid diagnostic test in the detection of schistosome infections from Schistosoma haematobium and mansoni in Siavonga district in Zambia.ResultsThe diagnostic performance of Schistosoma ICT IgG–IgM test was evaluated using 430 of the 440 participants’ samples which had complete data. The prevalence of S. haematobium and S. mansoni was 4.4% and 6%, respectively, while seroprevalence was 71.4%. The sensitivity and specificity of the Schistosoma ICT IgG–IgM test was found to be 100% and 32.2%, respectively. The associated positive predictive value was 13.8% and 100% for negative predictive value. Diagnostic accuracy [area under the curve (AUC)] was 0.57 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.52, 0.62].ConclusionsThe Schistosoma ICT IgG–IgM proved to have remarkably high sensitivity with a fairly good specificity and diagnostic accuracy for the detection of both urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis. We therefore recommend the test as it is ideal for screening in the light of current focus of disease elimination in endemic countries.
Highlights
Schistosomiasis or bilharzia is one of the neglected tropical diseases affecting over 230 million people globally
2020 among participants living in Nabutezi, Butete, Siamatika, and Machamvwa areas in Siavonga district, areas known to be endemic for schistosomiasis infections— both S. haematobium and S. mansoni
The univariate analysis of factors associated with schistosome infection based on microscopy and Schistosoma ICT IgG–IgM test showed a comparable result (p > 0.05)
Summary
Schistosomiasis or bilharzia is one of the neglected tropical diseases affecting over 230 million people globally. The definitive diagnosis of schistosomiasis has traditionally been achieved by urine filtration for S. haematobium and Kato-Katz thick smears for S. mansoni These methods detect active infection of schistosomiasis by visualizing schistosome eggs in either urine and/or stools under a microscope. The scale-up of the preventative chemotherapy campaign, where the helminth egg output is likely to Mudenda et al The Journal of Basic and Applied Zoology (2022) 83:4 reduce, will probably worsen the reduction in sensitivity of the traditional diagnostic tools This raises a need for sensitive tools essential for sustainable impact to eliminate schistosomiasis in endemic countries (Kalinda et al, 2018; MOH, 2017; Ross et al, 2017; Shehata et al, 2018; WHO, 2018)
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