Diagnosis of schistosomiasis by CCA or CAA detecting lateral flow tests

The GSA hosted an online symposium on Diagnosis of schistosomiasis by CCA or CAA detecting lateral flow tests: Facts and challenges, on June 14 2022, supported by the INSPiRED project.

The objective of the meeting was to identify shared achievements and challenges in the implementation of the lateral flow tests for the detection of CCA and/or CAA for diagnosing schistosomiasis in endemic regions.

The symposium was chaired by Dr Lisette van Lieshout, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC, Netherlands) and brought together diagnostics experts and stakeholders, with 81 participants, approximately 40% from Schistosoma endemic countries. The following priority needs, and recommendations were identified:

• A commercially available field applicable CAA test
• Guidelines for the verification of different batches of the POC-CCA test
• Establishment of an external quality assessment scheme for CCA and CAA tests
• An ultra-sensitive CAA test available for research purposes
• Follow-up meetings with more exchange of findings between key players and end-users, including a small-scale meeting specifically on POC-CCA discussion points (including manufacturer).