Detection of Plasmodium falciparum DNA in saliva samples stored at room temperature: potential for a non-invasive saliva-based diagnostic test for malaria

Background Current malaria diagnostic methods require blood collection, that may be associated with pain and the risk of transmitting blood-borne pathogens, and often create poor compliance when repeated sampling is needed. On the other hand, the collection of saliva is minimally invasive; but saliva has not been widely used for the diagnosis of malaria. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of saliva collected and stored at room temperature using the OMNIgene®•ORAL kit for diagnosing Plasmodium falciparum malaria.