Application of a point-of-care test for the serodiagnosis of typhoid fever in Nigeria and the need for improved diagnostics

Abstract

Introduction: There is an urgent need for affordable point-of-care diagnostics for the differentiation of febrile illnesses and the confirmation of typhoid in endemic countries.

Methodology: Blood samples were collected from febrile patients with clinical suspicion of typhoid and screened for typhoid fever using the Widal and Typhi Dri Dot tests, while stool and blood samples were screened for Salmonella Typhi using the culture method as well as PCR as a confirmatory test.

Results: A high proportion of febrile patients from Lagos with clinical suspicion of typhoid fever reacted positively in a simple and rapid latex agglutination assay for typhoid fever, indicating that this illness is a common and presumably under-diagnosed health problem in this metropolis. Seropositivity was 19.2% in the rapid test compared with 22.9% in the classical Widal test. The confirmation of typhoid in these seropositive patients appeared cumbersome because of negative blood cultures and low DNA yield in molecular testing. A review of the literature revealed that in Nigeria seroprevalence rates can be high in the normal population and that pathogens other than S. Typhi are often isolated from the blood of seropositive febrile patients.

Conclusion: The simplicity and the relatively high specificity (97.8%) of the rapid test as determined in a study performed in Indonesia calls for a further validation of this promising test for use in Africa.