This study aims to better understand and quantify the burden of febrile illness, the aetiological causes and the manner in which it affects the people living in rural areas in South and Southeast Asia, all on a scale which has not been attempted before. The SEACTN RFI project will collect information to help better understand and predict these outcomes based on a multitude of factors, which will form the basis for interventions within the network in the future. Determining the incidence, causes and outcomes of febrile illness in these settings will be done through two work packages. The first of these, Work Package A (WP-A), the subject of this study, will be carried out at the community level, primarily by engaging village health worker (VHWs) and low-level Health Centres (HCs) which serve the communities to recruit patients presenting with a febrile illness. These patients will be assessed for presenting symptoms and followed up for clinical outcomes. Collection of specimen for diagnostic investigations in these settings is challenging. Currently, mRDTs are conducted by VHWs and HCs in these networks, therefore by using the same process, but also applying blood to filter paper and allowing it to dry (DBS), investigators will test for certain other pathogens, which will increase the aetiological yield.
The study will collect information to understand the causes and outcomes of febrile illness in rural areas in countries across South and Southeast Asia ( including Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Bangladesh). The findings will be used to identify new tests and treatments that can improve the management of febrile patients in the future.