Poor quality of testing reagents in Kenyan public hospitals has led to thousands being treated for Brucellosis-a milk linked disease, a research by Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) reveals.
KEMRI in partnership with six other international organizations in their research called for withdrawal of the responsible test in public hospitals.
In a publication by the Standard, it is highlighted that in 2012 some 75,256 cases of Brucellosis were reported to the Kenya Health Information System.
But going by the new study, only about one percent of these patients may have been infected with Brucellosis.
“It is that bad. The diagnosis of brucellosis has been a challenge and it is time we looked into it seriously,” said Prof Sam Kariuki of KEMRI, supervisor of the study.
He attributed the sudden increase of resistance to antibiotics in the country to poor diagnostic tools in hospitals that have also caused serious health implications to patients.
“It is also a serious contributor to the growing antibiotic resistance in the country,” added Prof Kariuki.
Febrile antigen brucella agglutination test or FBAT is used in Government facilities throughout Kenya. The study recommends that it be phased out due to poor diagnostic specificity.
“It appears to have very poor diagnostic specificity and should be phased out,” recommends the study published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
In a test done to 825 patients to diagnose Brucellosis at Busia County Referral hospital and at KEMRI’s Alupe clinic in the same area, the team of researchers used government’s regular FBAT, a second diagnostic tool called Rose Bengal Test (RBT), while another two kits were used to confirm the results.
Results from the regular FBAT showed that out of the 825 patients, 196 of them (19.6%) tested positive for Brucellosis.
But when those who had tested positive with the FBAT test were tested using RBT and the other confirmatory tests, only 8 patients out of the total 1o96 tested positive to Brucellosis.
The researchers concluded that some of the reagents being for testing Brucellosis in hospitals are of poor quality, a probable result of foul play in the procurement process.