Evaluation of Malaria Standard Microscopy and Rapid Diagnostic Tests for Screening - Southern Tanzania, 2018-2019.

What is already known about this topic?: Microscopy is the gold standard for parasitological confirmation, but the accuracy of microscopic diagnosis is influenced by the skill of the technicians. An alternative is the immunologic-based malaria rapid diagnostic tests (mRDTs). What is added by this report?: Our study evaluated standard microscopy in health system (SMHS) and mRDTs for focused screening and treatment of malaria (FSAT) in Southern Tanzania. We showed that mRDTs were more sensitive than local SMHS for diagnosing malaria infection. What are the implications for public health practices?: Malaria rapid diagnostic tests can be useful as an alternative to SMHS for FSAT in the local context of Tanzania.