VetSRev
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Advances in Parasitology (2019) 103: 151–173
DOI: 10.1016/bs.apar.2018.09.001
The accurate, rapid, and cost-effective diagnosis of malaria and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in low-resource settings may benefit by significant technological advances in handheld and mobile phone microscopy. We systematically review the available literature in this field and discuss the future directions in which these technologies may be applied. English-language studies from the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Sciences were searched through April 2018 for observational and interventional studies reporting diagnostic characteristics of handheld and mobile phone microscopy devices as compared to field-established gold standard reference tests. Seventeen studies were included in the analysis. Findings included the high performance of the Newton Nm1 microscope in the diagnosis of Plasmodium species, Schistosoma mansoni, and soil-transmitted helminths (STHs), exhibiting sensitivity and specificity values often greater than 90%. Similarly, the CellScope was shown to have excellent diagnostic characteristics in the detection of Loa loa and Schistosoma species. Fluorescent microscopy was found to have high specificity and sensitivity in the diagnosis of Plasmodium species. Mobile phone technologies and handheld microscopes hold significant promise in the rapid and effective diagnosis of malaria and NTDs in areas where accurate diagnosis is vital. Although many of these technologies have yet to be securely embedded within the health system and studied directly in this context, the foundations for significant healthcare advances and impact have already been laid by several studies conducted within the last decade.
Vasiman, A., Stothard, J. R., & Bogoch, I. I. (2019). Mobile phone devices and handheld microscopes as diagnostic platforms for malaria and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in low-resource settings: a systematic review, historical perspective and future outlook. (Special Issue: Highlighting opertional and implementation research for control of helminthiasis.). Advances in Parasitology, 103, 151–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.apar.2018.09.001 Diagnosis of Animal Diseases [LL886], Techniques and Methodology [ZZ900], epidemiology, Nematoda, nematodes, helminths, infections, parasites, parasitoses, protozoal infections, diagnosis, diagnostic techniques, malaria, detection, mobile telephones, tropics, Protozoa, protozoal diseases, parasitic diseases, parasitic infestations, parasitosis, Protozoan, Helminth and Arthropod Parasites of Humans [VV220], Protozoan, Helminth, Mollusc and Arthropod Parasites of Animals [LL822], parasitic worms, neglected tropical diseases, tropical countries, tropical diseases, tropical zones, Diagnosis of Human Disease [VV720], Plasmodium, parasitology, Schistosoma, Schistosoma mansoni, African eyeworm, history, History and Biography [BB500], Loa, Loa loa, Onchocercidae, telephones