SynthesisPLoS neglected tropical diseases2012
The diagnostic accuracy of serologic and molecular methods for detecting visceral leishmaniasis in HIV infected patients: meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 84 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
84 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 154 citations in OpenAlex.
- Accuracy of the direct agglutination test for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC infectious diseases · 2023Pooled it
- Diagnosis of visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis using loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) protocols: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Parasites & vectors · 2022Pooled it
- The diagnostic accuracy of direct agglutination test for serodiagnosis of human visceral leishmaniasis: a systematic review with meta-analysis.BMC infectious diseases · 2020Pooled it
- Molecular tools for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis: systematic review and meta-analysis of diagnostic test accuracy.Journal of clinical microbiology · 2014Pooled it
- Fluorescence-based methods for detecting caries lesions: systematic review, meta-analysis and sources of heterogeneity.PloS one · 2013Pooled it
- Antigen Detection in Urine for Noninvasive Diagnosis and Treatment Monitoring of Visceral Leishmaniasis in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Coinfected Patients: An Exploratory Analysis from Ethiopia.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2018Trial
- A Diagnostic Algorithm Based on Urine Antigen and Blood Polymerase Chain Reaction Testing for Visceral Leishmaniasis in HIV-Coinfected Patients in Northwest Ethiopia.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2026Article
- Clinical, Laboratory, and Therapeutic Characteristics of Visceral Leishmaniasis with Emphasis on Immune Status: A Multicentre Cohort Study in Greece.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Evaluation of a new rapid diagnostic test, based on the chimeric protein Q5, for the diagnosis of human and canine forms of visceral leishmaniasis.Memorias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz · 2026Article
- Revisiting visceral leishmaniasis in immunocompromised patients: Ongoing gaps and advances in diagnostics, therapies, and preventive measures.Current research in parasitology & vector-borne diseases · 2026Review
- Article
- Impact of age and immune status on the accuracy of rapid diagnostic tests for visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Advances and Challenges in the Diagnosis of Leishmaniasis.Molecular diagnosis & therapy · 2025Review
- Fatal Outcome of Membranoproliferative Glomerulonephritis in a Patient With Hidden Visceral Leishmaniasis.Case reports in infectious diseases · 2025Article
- Article
- Serological Screening and Risk Factors Associated withMicroorganisms · 2024Article
- Simplified molecular diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis: Laboratory evaluation of miniature direct-on-blood PCR nucleic acid lateral flow immunoassay.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
- Comparison of the Diagnostic Performances of Five Different Tests in Diagnosing Visceral Leishmaniasis in an Endemic Region of Ethiopia.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Evaluation of a Point-of-Need Molecular Diagnostic Tool Coupled with Rapid DNA Extraction Methods for Visceral Leishmaniasis.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Diagnosis of invasive fungal infections: challenges and recent developments.Journal of biomedical science · 2023Review
24 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHuman visceral leishmaniasis (VL), a potentially fatal disease, has emerged as an important opportunistic condition in HIV infected patients. In immunocompromised patients, serological investigation is considered not an accurate diagnostic method for VL diagnosis and molecular techniques seem especially promising.
objectiveThis work is a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the accuracy of serologic and molecular tests for VL diagnosis specifically in HIV-infected patients.
methodsTwo independent reviewers searched PubMed and LILACS databases. The quality of studies was assessed by QUADAS score. Sensitivity and specificity were pooled separately and compared with overall accuracy measures: diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and symmetric summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC).
resultsThirty three studies recruiting 1,489 patients were included. The following tests were evaluated: Immunofluorescence Antibody Test (IFAT), Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunoblotting (Blot), direct agglutination test (DAT) and polimerase chain reaction (PCR) in whole blood and bone marrow. Most studies were carried out in Europe. Serological tests varied widely in performance, but with overall limited sensitivity. IFAT had poor sensitivity ranging from 11% to 82%. DOR (95% confidence interval) was higher for DAT 36.01 (9.95-130.29) and Blot 27.51 (9.27-81.66) than for IFAT 7.43 (3.08-1791) and ELISA 3.06 (0.71-13.10). PCR in whole blood had the highest DOR: 400.35 (58.47-2741.42). The accuracy of PCR based on Q-point was 0.95; 95%CI 0.92-0.97, which means good overall performance.
conclusionBased mainly on evidence gained by infection with Leishmania infantum chagasi, serological tests should not be used to rule out a diagnosis of VL among the HIV-infected, but a positive test at even low titers has diagnostic value when combined with the clinical case definition. Considering the available evidence, tests based on DNA detection are highly sensitive and may contribute to a diagnostic workup.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.