This article reviews conventional malaria diagnostic methods together with recently developed techniques for both malaria detection and infected erythrocyte separation.

Alternative diagnostic methods that are timely and effective are required to identify infections, particularly in field settings. At the early-stage of infection, patients show non-specific symptoms or are asymptomatic, which makes it difficult for clinical diagnosis, especially in non-endemic areas.

The large number of deaths caused by malaria each year has increased interest in the development of effective malaria diagnoses.