Diphtheria diagnostic capacity in the Western Pacific Region.

Santosh Gurung,Adroulla Efstratiou,Varja Grabovac,Lucy Reeve,Amy Trindall

doi:10.5365/wpsar.2019.10.2.008

Abstract

During the 26th Technical Advisory Group (TAG) meeting in Manila in July 2017, recommendation was made to the WHO Secretariat to conduct a survey to map diphtheria laboratory capacity in the region and gather information on diagnostic testing methods. The gap analysis was carried out with structured questionnaires; a survey was conducted in 18 bacteriological laboratories including 15 countries in the Region, with responses received from 17 laboratories including 14 countries.

Highlights

1. assess current microbiological capability for the laboratory diagnosis of diphtheria in the Western Pacific Region; 2. assess public health impact in individual countries where diphtheria diagnostic activities may be limited; 3. assess availability of specialized reagents for diphtheria diagnostics in the Western Pacific Region; 4. assess training needs for scientists/medical/public health staff in this specialized area and identify best practices/gaps in diphtheria diagnostics to establish laboratory training workshops; and
A questionnaire used by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) to assess diphtheria diagnostic capacity[6] was adapted and sent to laboratories identified as part of the laboratory network for invasive bacterial diseases in the Western Pacific Region
The criteria were adapted from those used by ECDC, which were originally developed based on the advice of a group of experts from Public Health England (PHE), ECDC and the WHO Regional Office for Europe.[6]

Summary

Introduction

1. assess current microbiological capability for the laboratory diagnosis of diphtheria in the Western Pacific Region; 2. Assess public health impact in individual countries where diphtheria diagnostic activities may be limited; 3. Assess availability of specialized reagents for diphtheria diagnostics in the Western Pacific Region; 4. Assess training needs for scientists/medical/public health staff in this specialized area and identify best practices/gaps in diphtheria diagnostics to establish laboratory training workshops; and

Methods

Results

Conclusion