Microscopic methods to detect Schistosoma eggs in stools of
final hosts or cercariae shed from snail intermediate hosts are
time-consuming. The stool examination has certain problems;
it is difficult to differentiate between eggs of S. japonicum and S.
mekongi, eggs cannot be detected during the pre-patent period,
and it has low sensitivity in cases of light intensity of infection.
Moreover, morphological identification of Schistosoma cercariae
from snail intermediate hosts is also difficul