This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Clavijo, E. Articles by Smits, H. L. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Clavijo, E. Articles by Smits, H. L.

Comparison of a Dipstick Assay for Detection of Brucella-Specific Immunoglobulin M Antibodies with Other Tests for Serodiagnosis of Human Brucellosis

Microbiology Unit, HCU Virgen de la Victoria,¹ Department of Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Málaga University Málaga,² Department of Clinical Microbiology, University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain,³ KIT Biomedical Research, Royal Tropical Institute/Koninklijk Instituut voor de Tropen (KIT), Amsterdam, The Netherlands⁴

Received 2 August 2002/ Returned for modification 22 October 2002/ Accepted 26 March 2003

A dipstick assay for the detection of Brucella-specific immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies was evaluated by studying the serological response of 133 cultures and or serologically confirmed patients with brucellosis in its different stages along with those of 34 healthy controls. As regards patients with illness less than 3 months in duration, 93.1% tested positive by the dipstick assay, a percentage similar to that obtained in the standard serum agglutination test (SAT) (92.0%), somewhat lower than that obtained by culture (100%) and higher than that obtained by IgM enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (80.5%). SAT was the most sensitive test (87.0%) for patients with illness more than 3 months in duration, followed by culture (50%), the dipstick assay (28.3%), and IgM ELISA (7.5%). The results demonstrate that the dipstick assay could well be used in the serodiagnosis of patients with acute brucellosis, as well as to identify patients with a long history of the illness. Under laboratory conditions this test has the advantage of being quick and IgM antibody-specific.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• AFIFI, S., EARHART, K., AZAB, M. A., YOUSSEF, F. G., SAKKA, H. E., WASFY, M., MANSOUR, H., OUN, S. E., RAKHA, M., MAHONEY, F. (2005). HOSPITAL-BASED SURVEILLANCE FOR ACUTE FEBRILE ILLNESS IN EGYPT: A FOCUS ON COMMUNITY-ACQUIRED BLOODSTREAM INFECTIONS. Am J Trop Med Hyg 73: 392-399 [Abstract] [Full Text]