A scoping review of traditional and artificial intelligence methods in malaria diagnostics

Malaria remains a substantial global health burden with current diagnostics having notable limitations. Microscopy is labor-intensive and operator-dependent; rapid diagnostic tests lack sensitivity and provide qualitative rather than quantitative results. Recent AI advances, particularly deep learning, demonstrate significant potential for malaria diagnostics through automatic parasite detection in blood smears. Numerous systems achieve outstanding accuracy-comparable to human experts-while increasing throughput and reducing costs. In endemic regions, AI-based diagnostics can expand testing access; in non-endemic settings, they assist clinicians rarely encountering malaria, potentially reducing misdiagnosis rates. Successful AI applications emphasize digital medicine's broader potential to address global health disparities through automated, expert-quality diagnostics. Yet, challenges remain-inconsistent dataset annotation standards and limited representation of diverse endemic regions-for widespread AI-based diagnostic adoption. This review examines current diagnostic methods and evaluates the translational potential of AI-driven innovations in malaria diagnostics, discussing practical implications for researchers and stakeholders seeking to integrate these advances into clinical practice.