Plain-English translation of NCT05506358 on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗ · Source last updated · Translation generated · How we translate trials
This study doesn't follow the usual testing phases — it may be an observational study or a different type of research.
Researchers studied whether simple, affordable blood tests could accurately detect sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia in communities where access to expensive laboratory equipment is limited. The trial compared several low-cost screening methods — including automated sickling tests, solubility tests, and commercial rapid tests — against the gold standard laboratory test (HPLC) to see if they could reliably identify people with these blood disorders or carrier status.
Many people in rural and remote areas of Nepal and other developing regions cannot access standard laboratory testing for sickle cell disease and thalassemia. This trial aimed to find affordable, practical alternatives that health workers in these communities could use to screen for and diagnose these conditions with the same accuracy as expensive lab tests.
Participants visited a screening location in either Nepal or Canada and provided a single blood sample. Their blood was then tested using multiple methods — both the low-cost techniques being evaluated and the gold standard laboratory test — to compare how accurately each method detected sickle cell disease, carrier status, or thalassemia. The study involved approximately 145 participants total, with different groups representing people with different forms of these conditions or no blood disorder at all.
AI-generated summary from trial data · Oct 12, 2026 · Not medical advice
Canada
Nepal