Comparative evaluation of rapid diagnostic test and peripheral smear microscopy for malaria diagnosis

Malaria remains a major public health concern and accurate diagnosis is essential for effective management. This retrospective study compared the diagnostic performance of immunochromatographic rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) and peripheral blood smear (PBS) microscopy in India. A total of 150 suspected malaria cases were tested using both methods, with PBS confirming 30 positives (20%) and RDT detecting 20 positives (13.33%), all as Plasmodium vivax. PBS detected both P. vivax and P. falciparum, while RDT failed to identify P. falciparum but detected two P. vivax cases missed by PBS. Thus, we show that while RDT cannot fully replace PBS microscopy, it serves as a useful complementary tool for malaria diagnosis.