- Stay Connected
Socialize
Malaria Can Be Detected With A Breath Test
Australian scientists have discovered that the chemical make-up of malaria patients’ breath has distinctive properties, making diagnosis by breath analysis a possibility, medical officials reported on Tuesday.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) ran tests on volunteers by infecting them with malaria under controlled circumstances, Efe news agency reported.
Higher levels of four sulphuric compounds were detected in direct correlation with the severity of the infection.
The chemicals are not detectable by the human nose, but with the proper instruments, the disease can be diagnosed earlier than with the standard blood examination method, CSIRO explained in a statement.
“What is exciting is that the increase in these chemicals were present at very early stages of infection, when many other methods would have been unable to detect the parasite in the body of people infected with malaria,” CSIRO research group leader Stephen Trowell said.
Researchers are confident that this discovery will help develop a fast and economical system of malaria detection.
“We are also working with colleagues to develop very specific, sensitive and cheap biosensors that could be used in the clinic and the field to test breath for malaria,” Trowell added.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), around 200 million cases of malaria and half a million malaria deaths were recorded in 2013.
Posted by
New Educated Zambia©
April 23, 2015 at 8:33 am
This will be good for quicker diagnosis. This is the type of initiatives in research we need in the country. Why should foreign nations that do not have such disease be the ones to make break through discovery? It is because of incompetent sleeping government such as pf are used being spoon fed by rich nations. We in the upnd will ensure zambians take charge of their fate by facilitating and supporting scientific research by key stakeholders.
BLACKSTAR WARRIOR
April 23, 2015 at 10:44 am
Most Zambian muslims were converted to Islam by their asian employers… most of them either works/worked as house servant or cook for muslims in Zambia. They are/were only given employment on condition that they practice Islam, Look around you, in Zambia most “nannies” that work for Indians have to cover their heads and wear long muslim robes. Chitenges are forbbiden because they show too much “BOKOSI”
Most Zambians that work for muslims are now muslims too!!
Moonflower
April 26, 2015 at 9:42 am
A farmer in Kenya says one of his cows has given up its usual vegetarian diet and started eating sheep.
Hello Haters
April 26, 2015 at 4:27 pm
So what?