False-positive serological tests in acute malaria
Ghosh, K.; Javeri, K.N.; Mohanty, D.; Parmar, B.D.; Surati, R.R.; Joshi, S.H.
British Journal of Biomedical Science 58(1): 20-23
2001
ISSN/ISBN: 0967-4845 PMID: 11284219 Document Number: 532010
A range of serological tests, including rapid plasma reagin, Widal test, ELISA for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and 2, direct Coombs' test, and rheumatoid factor were performed in a well-characterized cohort of 100 patients with acute malaria in Gujarat, India (Plasmodium vivax infection: 31 patients; P. falciparum infection: 69 patients). 25 healthy volunteers from a similar area were used as controls. Three patients from the severe P. falciparum group died, the remainder of the patients recovered completely. A large proportion of these patients showed false-positive serological reactions during the acute stage of infection, which became negative on re-testing, four weeks after recovery. In tropical countries such as India, where malaria is endemic, results of serological tests should be interpreted with caution in a patient with pyrexia of unknown origin.