Retrospective Evaluation of the SD BIOLINE Dengue Duo Rapid Diagnostic Test During a Dengue Epidemic in Burkina Faso

Abstract

The SD Bioline Dengue Duo rapid diagnostic test is the primary means of diagnostic guidance for dengue and in many cases the only one in Burkina Faso. Our objective was to evaluate the performance of this test during the 2017 dengue epidemic. By analysing data from samples during the 2017 dengue epidemic in Burkina Faso for which both rapid test and Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction and, or Immunoglobulin M capture by Enzyme Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay results were available, the rapid diagnostic test was compared to Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction and, or Immunoglobulin M detection by Enzyme Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay. The sensitivity and specificity of the tests were calculated and their overall performance was evaluated by the area under the curve. Out of 706 suspected patients, 514 or 72.8% were confirmed by the reference techniques. The positivity rates were 69%, 19% and 26% respectively for NS1 antigen, Immunoglobulin M antibody and Immunoglobulin G antibody. The rapid diagnostic test had a very good sensitivity of 99% for a specificity of 5%. The detection of NS1 antigen by rapid diagnostic test showed the best compromise, with an area under the curve of 0.7. Considering only the results of the NS1 Antigen, the rapid diagnostic test could be a viable solution for the management of dengue epidemics in health centers without a laboratory.