Journal article
First international external quality assessment scheme of nucleic acid amplification tests for the detection of Schistosoma and soil-transmitted helminths, including Strongyloides: A pilot study
Piet Cools, Lisette van Lieshout, Rob Koelewijn, David Addiss, Sitara SR Ajjampur, Mio Ayana, Richard S Bradbury, Jason L Cantera, Daniel Dana, Kerstin Fischer, Rubina Imtiaz, Joyce Kabagenyi, James Lok, James McCarthy, Rojelio Mejia, Zeleke Mekonnen, Sammy M Njenga, Nurulhasanah Othman, Hongguang Shao, Rebecca Traub Show all
PLOS NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES | PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE | Published : 2020
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) are increasingly being used as diagnostic tools for soil-transmitted helminths (STHs; Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, Necator americanus, Ancylostoma duodenale and A. ceylanicum), Strongyloides stercoralis and Schistosoma in human stool. Currently, there is a large diversity of NAATs being applied, but an external quality assessment scheme (EQAS) for these diagnostics is lacking. An EQAS involves a blinded process where test results reported by a laboratory are compared to those reported by reference or expert laboratories, allowing for an objective assessment of the diagnostic performance of a laboratory. In the current study, ..
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Awarded by Bill and Melinda Gates foundation
Awarded by EDCTP2 program - European Union
Funding Acknowledgements
This study was funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation (OPP1120972, www.starworms.org), Dutch Foundation for Quality Assessment in Medical Laboratories (SKML) and Children Without Worms. PC was financially supported the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation (OPP1120972, www.starworms.org).BL was a postdoctoral fellow of the Research Foundation (www.FWO.be).JV was financially supported through an International Coordination Action of the Flemish Research Foundation. LvL is funded in part by the EDCTP2 program supported by the European Union (grant number RIA2017NCT-1845 STOP; www.stoptheworm.org).The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.