Evaluation of ten (10) SARS-CoV-2 rapid serological tests in comparison with WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 ab ELISA in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of ten (10) SARS-CoV-2 serological rapid diagnostic tests in comparison with the WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA test in a laboratory setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten (10) SARS-CoV-2 serological rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for SARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM were evaluated with two (2) groups of plasma tested positive for one and negative for the other with the WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA. The diagnostic performance of the SARS-CoV-2 serological RDTs and their agreement with the reference test were calculated with their 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: The sensitivity of serological RDTs ranged from 27.39 to 61.67% and the specificity from 93.33 to 100% compared to WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA test. Of all the tests, two tests (STANDARD Q COVID-19 IgM/IgG Combo SD BIOSENSOR and COVID-19 IgG/IgM Rapid Test (Zhejiang Orient Gene Biotech Co., Ltd)) had a sensitivity greater than 50%. In addition, all ten tests had specificity greater than or equal to 93.33% each. The concordance between RDTs and WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA test ranged from 0.25 to 0.61. CONCLUSION: The SARS-CoV-2 serological RDTs evaluated show low and variable sensitivities compared to the WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA test, with however a good specificity. These finding may have implications for the interpretation and comparison of COVID-19 seroprevalence studies depending on the type of test used.

Hepatitis B, C, and D virus and human T-cell leukemia virus types 1 and 2 infections and correlates among men who have sex with men in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

BACKGROUND: Men who have sex with men (MSM) are considered to be at significant risk for sexually transmitted infections (STI) and bloodborne viruses including viral hepatitis types B, C, and D (HBV, HCV, and HDV) and human T-cell leukemia virus types 1 and 2 (HTLV 1&2). This study aimed to assess the seroprevalence and correlates of HBV, HCV, HDV, and HTLV 1&2 antibodies among MSM in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey to assess the biological and behavourial characteristics among MSM in Ouagadougou from January to April 2013. Serum specimens obtained were tested for the presence of HBV, HCV, HDV and HTLV-1&2 infections. MSM 18 years and older were recruited using respondent driven sampling (RDS). Population estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CI) adjusted for the RDS design were calculated using RDS Analysis Tool (RDSAT) version 6.0.1 (RDS, Inc., Ithaca, NY). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess correlates of these infections using Stata 14. RESULTS: A total of 329 MSM were tested. Prevalence was 20.4% (95% CI: 16.4-25.1) for HBV, 11.0% (95% CI: 8.0-14.8) for HCV, and 0.0% for HDV. Anti-HTLV 1&2 antibodies were found in 4.0% (95% CI: 2.3-6.8) of MSM. Factors independently associated with HBV infection were lack of condom use during the last anal sex act with a main male sexual partner and experience of condom tearing during anal sex. Presence of anti-HTLV 1&2 antibodies was associated with history of genital or anal lesions and injection drug use. None of the variables included in our study were associated with HCV. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that HBV, HCV and HTLV 1&2 prevalence among MSM in Burkina is high and suggests that comprehensive STI prevention and sexual health education services for this group are needed.