Dual Screen and Confirm Rapid Test Does Not Reduce Overtreatment of Syphilis in Pregnant Women Living in a Non-venereal treponematoses Endemic Region: a Field Evaluation Among Antenatal Care Attendees in Burkina Faso

Abstract

In resource-limited settings, screening pregnant women for syphilis using rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) is a key tool in the prevention of congenital syphilis. However, most syphilis RDTs detect only treponemal antibodies (T-RDT), meaning antibiotics may be provided unnecessarily to previously treated pregnant women, particularly in non-venereal treponematoses endemic regions. We estimated the potential reduction in overtreatment when comparing T-RDT (SD Bioline) to a newer rapid test (Dual Path Platform (DPP) Screen and Confirm Assay, Chembio) detecting both treponemal and non-treponemal antibodies.