The Summary Index of Malaria Surveillance (SIMS): a stable index of malaria within India

Abstract Malaria surveillance is weak in high malaria burden countries. Surveillance is considered as one of the core interventions for malaria elimination. Impressive reductions in malaria-associated morbidity and mortality have been achieved across the globe, but sustained efforts need to be bolstered up to achieve malaria elimination in endemic countries like India. Poor surveillance data become a hindrance in assessing the progress achieved towards malaria elimination and in channelizing focused interventions to the hotspots. A major obstacle in strengthening India’s reporting systems is that the surveillance data are captured in a fragmented manner by multiple players, in silos, and is distributed across geographic regions. In addition, the data are not reported in near real-time. Furthermore, multiplicity of malaria data resources limits interoperability between them. Here, we deliberate on the acute need of updating India’s surveillance systems from the use of aggregated data to near real-time case-based surveillance. This will help in identifying the drivers of malaria transmission in any locale and therefore will facilitate formulation of appropriate interventional responses rapidly.

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Test–retest reliability of the EQ-5D-5L and the reworded QOLIBRI-OS in the general population of Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom

Quality of Life Research ◽

10.1007/s11136-021-02893-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Di Long ◽

Suzanne Polinder ◽

Gouke J. Bonsel ◽

Juanita A. Haagsma

Keyword(s):

United Kingdom ◽

General Population ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Web Based ◽

Retest Reliability ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Sum Score ◽

Summary Index ◽

Test Retest Reliability ◽

Eq Vas

Abstract Purpose To assess the test–retest reliability of the EQ-5D-5L and the reworded Quality of Life After Traumatic Brain Injury Overall Scale (QOLIBRI-OS) for the general population of Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom (UK). Methods The sample contains 1864 members of the general population (aged 18–75 years) of Italy, the Netherlands, and the UK who completed a web-based questionnaire at two consecutive time points. The survey included items on gender, age, level of education, occupational status, household annual income, chronic health status, and the EQ-5D-5L and reworded QOLIBRI-OS instrument. Test–retest reliability of the EQ-5D-5L dimensions, EQ-5D-5L summary index, EQ VAS, reworded QOLIBRI-OS dimensions and reworded QOLIBRI-OS level sum score was examined by Gwet’s Agreement Coefficient (Gwet’s AC) and Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). Results Gwet’s AC ranged from 0.64 to 0.97 for EQ-5D-5L dimensions. The ICC ranged from 0.73 to 0.84 for the EQ-5D-5L summary index and 0.61 to 0.68 for EQ VAS in the three countries. Gwet’s AC ranged from 0.35 to 0.55 for reworded QOLIBRI-OS dimensions in the three countries. The ICC ranged from 0.69 to 0.77 for reworded QOLIBRI-OS level sum score. Conclusion Test–retest reliability of the EQ-5D-5L administered via a web-based questionnaire was substantial to almost perfect for the EQ-5D-5L dimensions, good for EQ-5D-5L summary index, and moderate for the EQ VAS. However, test–retest reliability was less satisfactory for the reworded QOLIBRI-OS. This indicates that the web-based EQ-5D-5L is a reliable instrument for the general population, but further research of the reworded QOLIBRI-OS is required.

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Community-based molecular and serological surveillance of subclinical malaria in Myanmar

BMC Medicine ◽

10.1186/s12916-021-01993-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Katherine O’Flaherty ◽

Win Han Oo ◽

Sophie G. Zaloumis ◽

Julia C. Cutts ◽

Kyaw Zayar Aung ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Malaria Transmission ◽

Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽

Dried Blood Spots ◽

Molecular Testing ◽

Sample Collection ◽

Malaria Surveillance ◽

Surveillance Network ◽

Targeted Interventions ◽

Residual Malaria Transmission ◽

Serological Surveillance

Abstract Background In the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), current malaria surveillance strategies rely on a network of village health volunteers (VHVs) reporting the results of rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), known to miss many asymptomatic infections. Integration of more sensitive diagnostic molecular and serological measures into the VHV network may improve surveillance of residual malaria transmission in hard-to-reach areas in the region and inform targeted interventions and elimination responses. However, data on residual malaria transmission that would be captured by these measures in the VHV-led testing and treatment surveillance network in the GMS is unknown. Methods A total of 114 VHVs were trained to collect dried blood spots from villagers undergoing routine RDTs as part of VHV-led active and passive case detection from April 2015 to June 2016. Samples were subjected to molecular testing (quantitative polymerase chain reaction [qPCR]) to determine Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax infection and serological testing (against P. falciparum and P. vivax antigens) to determine exposure to P. falciparum and P. vivax. Results Over 15 months, 114 VHVs performed 32,194 RDTs and collected samples for molecular (n = 13,157) and serological (n = 14,128) testing. The prevalence of molecular-detectable P. falciparum and P. vivax infection was 3.2% compared to the 0.16% prevalence of Plasmodium spp. by RDT, highlighting the large burden of infections undetected by standard surveillance. Peaks in anti-P. falciparum, but not P. vivax, merozoite IgG seroprevalence coincided with seasonal P. falciparum transmission peaks, even in those with no molecularly detectable parasites. At the individual level, antibody seropositivity was associated with reduced odds of contemporaneous P. falciparum (OR for PfCSP 0.51 [95%CI 0.35, 0.76], p = 0.001, PfAMA1 0.70 [95%CI 0.52, 0.93], p = 0.01, and PfMSP2 0.81 [95%CI 0.61, 1.08], p = 0.15), but not P. vivax infection (OR PvAMA1 1.02 [95%CI 0.73, 1.43], p = 0.89) indicating a potential role of immunity in protection against molecular-detectable P. falciparum parasitaemia. Conclusions We demonstrated that integration and implementation of sample collection for molecular and serological surveillance into networks of VHV servicing hard-to-reach populations in the GMS is feasible, can capture significant levels of ongoing undetected seasonal malaria transmission and has the potential to supplement current routine RDT testing. Improving malaria surveillance by advancing the integration of molecular and serological techniques, through centralised testing approaches or novel point-of-contact tests, will advance progress, and tracking, towards malaria elimination goals in the GMS.

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Constructing a summary index using the standardized inverse-covariance weighted average of indicators

The Stata Journal Promoting communications on statistics and Stata ◽

10.1177/1536867x20976325 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (4) ◽

pp. 952-964

Author(s):

Benjamin Schwab ◽

Sarah Janzen ◽

Nicholas P. Magnan ◽

William M. Thompson

Keyword(s):

Least Squares Method ◽

Weighted Average ◽

Generalized Least Squares ◽

American Statistical Association ◽

Cash Transfer ◽

Transfer Program ◽

Statistical Association ◽

Generalized Least Squares Method ◽

Summary Index ◽

The Relationship

Researchers often want to examine the relationship between a variable of interest and multiple related outcomes. To avoid problems of inference that arise from testing multiple hypotheses, one can create a summary index of the outcomes. Summary indices facilitate generalizing findings and can be more powerful than individual tests. In this article, we introduce a command, swindex, that implements the generalized least-squares method of index construction proposed by Anderson (2008, Journal of the American Statistical Association 103: 1481–1495). We describe the command and its options and provide an example based on Blattman, Fiala, and Martinez’s (2014, Quarterly Journal of Economics 129: 697–752) evaluation of a cash transfer program in Uganda.

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Assessment of Plasmodium antigens and CRP in dried blood spots with multiplex malaria array

Journal of Parasitic Diseases ◽

10.1007/s12639-020-01325-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ihn Kyung Jang ◽

Sara Aranda ◽

Rebecca Barney ◽

Andrew Rashid ◽

Muhammad Helwany ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thermal Stability ◽

Whole Blood ◽

Dried Blood Spots ◽

Careful Consideration ◽

Clinical Samples ◽

Sample Type ◽

Sample Collection ◽

Malaria Surveillance ◽

Inflammatory Biomarker ◽

Blood Spots

AbstractDried blood spots (DBS) typically prepared on filter papers are an ideal sample type for malaria surveillance by offering easy and cost-effective methods in terms of sample collection, storage, and transport. The objective of this study was to evaluate the applicability of DBS with a commercial multiplex malaria assay, developed to concurrently measure Plasmodium antigens, histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2), Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH), and a host inflammatory biomarker, C-reactive protein (CRP), in whole blood. The assay conditions were optimized for DBS, and thermal stability for measurement of Plasmodium antigens and CRP in dried blood were determined. Performance of the multiplex assay on matched DBS and whole blood pellet samples was also evaluated using the clinical samples. The results indicate the acceptable performance in multiplex antigen detection using DBS samples. At cutoff levels for DBS, with a diagnostic specificity with a lower 95% confidence bound > 92%, diagnostic sensitivities against polymerase chain reaction (PCR)–confirmed malaria for HRP2, Pf LDH, Pv LDH, and Pan LDH were 93.5%, 80.4%, 21.3%, and 55.6%, respectively. The half-life of pLDH was significantly less than that of HRP2 in thermal stability studies. Results with DBS samples collected from Peru indicate that the uncontrolled storage conditions of DBS can result in inaccurate reporting for infection with P. falciparum parasites with hrp2/3 deletions. With careful consideration that minimizing the unfavorable DBS storage environment is essential for ensuring integrity of heat-labile Plasmodium antigens, DBS samples can be used as an alternative to liquid whole blood to detect P. falciparum with hrp2/3 deletions in malaria surveillance.

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SUMMARY INDEX OF KNOWN PROVENANCES

Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies ◽

10.1111/j.2041-5370.1961.tb01213.x ◽

1961 ◽

Vol 8 (Supplement_11) ◽

pp. 250-252

Keyword(s):

Summary Index

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Surveillance-based estimation of the malaria disease burden in a low endemic state of Punjab, India, targeted for malaria elimination

Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene ◽

10.1093/trstmh/trab005 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jaspreet Kaur ◽

Taruna Kaura ◽

Ayush Sharma ◽

Ashish Kumar ◽

M K Pangotra ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Malaria Elimination ◽

Control Strategies ◽

The State ◽

Primary Data ◽

Effective Control ◽

Malaria Surveillance ◽

Weighted Estimates ◽

Malaria Burden ◽

Routine Surveillance ◽

Malaria Trends

Abstract Background The state of Punjab in India qualifies for malaria elimination because the number of cases reported through routine surveillance is in decline. However, surveillance system prevalence mainly provides malaria trends. Therefore, a prospective epidemiological study was designed to estimate the malaria burden in the state. Methods District-wise annual parasite incidence (API) was used for identification of three strata, representing high, moderate and low API zones. A total of 0.9 million people from nine districts was under malaria surveillance for 1 y. The weighted estimates of API for the three regions was calculated and combined to give an estimate of API for the total population of the state. Results Based upon the primary data generated, malaria cases from high, moderate and low malaria-endemic areas were estimated to be 3727, 904 and 106, respectively. Further, the total number of malaria cases in the state was estimated to be 4737 (95% CI 4006 to 5469) cases per annum. Conclusion Actual burden of malaria in the state of Punjab, India, is about seven to eight times higher than that reported by routine surveillance activities. However, the state still qualifies for malaria elimination but needs vigorous efforts to strengthen the active surveillance and reporting system along with implementation of effective control strategies to achieve malaria elimination.

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