Efficacy and limitations of QBC acridine orange staining as a routine diagnostic technique for malaria in developing...

The recently developed QBC technique has been reported to be rapid, sensitive and specific for the detection of malaria infection. We evaluated this technique in comparison with thin and thick Giemsa stained blood films for the diagnosis of malaria in acute fever and PUO cases. The technique was slightly more sensitive than thin blood film but equal to thick blood film examination. Identification of species of malaria posed some difficulties. Due to its high cost and requirement for a fluorescent microscope this technique, in spite of its speed and sensitivity, may not have the potential to be a substitute for the conventional blood film examination for the diagnosis of malaria, especially in developing countries.