Malaria

[[Category:Haematology]

Overview
Department	Haematology, thick film referred to Canterbury Health Laboratories
Test Code
Synonyms	Blood parasites   Malarial parasites   Thick films   Malarial Antigens
Availability	Monday - Sunday, testing routinely available out of hours
Turnaround Time	Malarial Antigen result within an hour.
Stability – Add test
Specimen Requirements
Specimen	Whole blood
Preferred	4 mL EDTA Purple-Top - film to be made ASAP
Acceptable
Unacceptable	Clotted samples Samples older than 6 hours
Specimen Transportation	ASAP to lab
Paediatric Requirements	EDTA Microtainer
Aliquot Requirements
Sample
Preferred Volume
Minimum Volume
Aliquot Transportation
Clinical Information
Reference Intervals	Interpretation with report
Test Method	Stained thin film microscopy   Antigen testing   Thick film   CBC also required
Advanced Notice
Patient Preparation	Collect sample at peak of fever if possible
Comments
Thick films are referred to Canterbury Health Laboratories for final result and speciation of parasites.   Antigen testing and thin blood film microscopy can provisionally exclude malaria, however thick film examination is the gold standard confirmatory test. As a negative result may not rule out malaria, if symptoms persist, consider sending repeat specimen in the interim.