Country: Netherlands
What infection type does your test focus on? Bloodstream Infection
What does your test detect? Pathogen(s)
About the Team:
Our team comprises the Institut de Recherche en Science de la Sante-Unite de Recherche Clinique de Nanoro, Nanoro, Burkina Faso (led by Halidou Tinto and Francois Kiemde) and the Parasitology Unit of the Department of Medical Microbiology at the Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam, The Netjerlands (led by Henk Schallig and Petra Mens). Together we are RAPDIF and aiming at Rapid Diagnosis of Febrile Illnesses. We have ample experience in developing, evaluating and implementing diagnostic tests and interventions aiming at the control of infectious diseases with a particular interest on malaria and undifferentiated fevers. For the Longitude Prize we are focusing on tackling the problem of appropriately diagnosing febrile infections in malaria endemic regions. With the increasing success of malaria control (and hence decline of the disease in certain regions), we have noted that many other febrile cases remain undiagnosed resulting in unneeded prescription of anti-malarials (as clinicians do not want to take the risk of not treating a potentially fatal disease) or over-prescription of antibiotics (that results in increased resistance). To address this issue we strive towards the development and evaluation of new diagnostic tests, approaches and algorithms that can aid health workers in malaria endemic countries to make the right diagnosis, install proper and evidence-based treatment and subsequently contribute to the containment of emerging drug resistance.
