Kusotera Tapiwanashe, Nhengu Trust G
Department of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Harare.
Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med. 2020 Aug 5;12(1):e1-e3. doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v12i1.2501.
The use of SARS-CoV-2 rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kits by some African countries for screening has raised serious concerns over their role in malaria areas. Coupled with a lack of adequate personal protective equipment and the scarcity of knowledge on the possible interaction between malaria and COVID-19 both in terms of presentations and shared symptoms, this has left many frontline health workers with fears and anxieties. Several anecdotal reports have already raised questions pertaining to possible false-positive COVID-19 results in proven malaria cases by use of SARS-CoV-2 RDT kits with huge costs to already constrained budgets. The report raises concerns on the use of SARS-CoV-2 kits in malaria areas in terms of cost, to prompt research, allay fears and guide policy during this pandemic and beyond.
一些非洲国家使用新冠病毒快速诊断测试（RDT）试剂盒进行筛查，这引发了人们对其在疟疾地区所起作用的严重担忧。再加上缺乏足够的个人防护装备，以及在疟疾和新冠病毒在临床表现和共同症状方面可能存在的相互作用方面知识匮乏，这让许多一线医护人员感到恐惧和焦虑。一些传闻报告已经提出了相关问题，即使用新冠病毒RDT试剂盒在已确诊的疟疾病例中可能出现新冠病毒假阳性结果，这对本就紧张的预算造成了巨大成本。该报告从成本角度对在疟疾地区使用新冠病毒试剂盒提出了担忧，以促使开展研究、减轻恐惧，并在此次疫情期间及之后指导政策制定。
