In the absence of policies regulating the prices of diagnostic tests, patients are forced to rely on laboratories using unreliable kits.
KARACHI:
As the spread of dengue and malaria once again afflicts residents of the port city, diagnostic tests and platelet treatments have become unaffordable for the public. As a result, small laboratories now perform tests using poor quality kits which, although lightweight, produce unreliable results.
Hundreds of laboratories continue to operate without registration, with insufficiently trained staff, often creating difficulties for patients. Although doctors rely heavily on medical test reports to prescribe treatment for vector-borne diseases, the Ministry of Health has remained silent on the use of substandard kits and overcharging patients, allowing the medical sector to exploit poor families without fear of action.
Currently, almost all laboratories in Karachi charge their own rates for dengue, malaria and other blood tests, well out of reach of poor patients. Many laboratories use inexpensive rapid kits for screening. A 2019 study in Pakistan found that these fast devices only provide about 70% accurate results, with a 30% chance of error. Despite this, many laboratories continue to use cheap and unreliable kits, leading to questionable reports that doctors then use to make treatment decisions, sometimes putting patients’ lives at risk.
A dengue patient, Saqib, revealed that he had his dengue and malaria tests done at two different labs, one charging Rs 2,000 and the other Rs 1,400. The lab workers told him that his tests were done using rapid kits. “My CBC reports from the two labs differed significantly, and the doctor explained that these variations were due to differences in diagnostic kits. Dengue patients often also need platelet transfusions, costing between Rs 6,000 and Rs 35,000,” Saqib said, while urging the government to ensure availability of platelets for dengue patients.
Similarly, Shazia, a resident of Jamshed Road, shared that her two sons developed high fever and the doctor asked her to take tests for dengue, malaria and CBC. “I had to pay Rs 7,000 in total. When I questioned the cost, the lab claimed that they used high-quality kits that doctors trusted, unlike the cheaper kits used by smaller labs whose reports may not be reliable,” Shazia said.
According to the Vector-Borne Diseases Department of the Sindh Director General of Health Services, 22 people died of dengue fever across Sindh from January to November 2025, including deaths reported from several districts of Karachi as well as Hyderabad, Jamshoro, Tando Muhammad Khan and Tando Muhammad Aliyar. During the same period, the number of dengue cases in Karachi and Sindh increased to 18,728.
At the Dow Laboratory, the dengue antigen test costs Rs 1,100, the dengue IgG/IgM test Rs 1,500, the dengue PCR test Rs 4,600 and the dengue ELISA test Rs 1,180, while the CBC test with ESR costs Rs 680. The same tests in large private hospitals are often twice as expensive, while smaller laboratories do not have fixed prices. PCR and ELISA techniques are considered more reliable, which is why they are more expensive in certified laboratories.
According to Sindh Health Care Commission Chairman Dr Khalid Shaikh, new discounted prices for dengue-related tests have been fixed till December 31, 2025. The ICT malaria test, which earlier cost Rs 3,050, is now priced at Rs 600; the dengue ELISA test, previously Rs 4,550, to Rs 1,100; the dengue IgM/Combo test, previously at Rs 4,150, at Rs 1,500; and CBC with smear, previously priced at Rs 1,250, is now available for Rs 500. Some large laboratories have implemented the new rates, but many small laboratories continue to charge as they wish.
