Performance of an immuno-rapid malaria Pf/Pv rapid diagnostic test for malaria diagnosis in the Western Brazilian Amazon.

INTRODUCTION: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for detecting Plasmodium antigens have become increasingly common worldwide. We aimed to evaluate the accuracy of the Immuno-Rapid Malaria Pf/Pv RDT in detecting Plasmodium vivax infection compared to standard thick blood smear (TBS) under microscopy.

METHODS: Hundred and eighty-one febrile patients from the hospital's regular admissions were assessed using TBS and RDT in a blinded experiment.

RESULTS: RDT showed a sensitivity of 98.9%, specificity of 100%, and accuracy of 99.5% for P. vivax infection when compared to TBS.

CONCLUSIONS: The RDT is highly accurate, making it a valuable diagnostic tool for P. vivax infection.