External quality assessment for arbovirus diagnostics in the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region, 2013–2016: improving laboratory quality over the years

Authors

  • Mohammad Yazid Abdad Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Manila, Philippines
  • Raynal C Squires Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Manila, Philippines
  • Sebastien Cognat Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Lyon, France
  • Christopher John Oxenford Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Lyon, France
  • Frank Konings Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Manila, Philippines

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5365/wpsar.2017.8.3.001

Abstract

Arboviruses continue to pose serious public health threats in the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region. As such, laboratories need to be equipped for their accurate detection. In 2011, to ensure test proficiency, the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific piloted an external quality assessment (EQA) programme for arbovirus diagnostics. By 2016, it had grown into a global programme with participation of 96 laboratories worldwide, including 25 laboratories from 19 countries, territories and areas in the Region. The test performance of the 25 laboratories in the Region in 2016 was high with 23 (92%) reporting correct results in all specimens for dengue and chikungunya viruses. For Zika virus, 18 (72%) of the 25 laboratories reported correct results in all specimens, while seven (28%) demonstrated at least one error. When comparing iterations of this EQA programme in the Region between 2013 and 2016, the number of participating laboratories increased from 18 to 25. The first round only included dengue virus, while the latest round additionally included chikungunya, Zika and yellow fever viruses. Proficiency for molecular detection of dengue virus remained high (83–94%) over the four-year period. The observed proficiency for arbovirus diagnostics between 2013 and 2016 is an indicator of laboratory quality improvement in the Region.

Published

29-09-2017

How to Cite

1.
Abdad MY, Squires RC, Cognat S, Oxenford CJ, Konings F. External quality assessment for arbovirus diagnostics in the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region, 2013–2016: improving laboratory quality over the years. Western Pac Surveill Response J [Internet]. 2017 Sep. 29 [cited 2024 Mar. 29];8(3). Available from: https://ojs.wpro.who.int/ojs/index.php/wpsar/article/view/557

Issue

Section

Regional Analysis

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