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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, March 2000, p. 1272-1275, Vol. 38, No. 3
0095-1137/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Simple Latex Agglutination Assay for Rapid Serodiagnosis of Human Leptospirosis

Henk L. Smits,1,* Menno A. W. G. van der Hoorn,1 Marga G. A. Goris,1 George C. Gussenhoven,1 Claude Yersin,2 David M. Sasaki,3 Wiepko J. Terpstra,1 and Rudy A. Hartskeerl1

Department of Biomedical Research, Royal Tropical Institute, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands1; Department of Medicine, Victoria Hospital, Victoria, Seychelles2; and Epidemiology Branch, Department of Health, State of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii3

Received 22 September 1999/Returned for modification 6 November 1999/Accepted 27 November 1999

A newly developed latex agglutination assay for the detection of genus-specific Leptospira antibodies in human sera was evaluated. The assay is performed by mixing, on an agglutination card, serum with equal volumes of stabilized antigen-coated, dyed test and control latex beads and is read within 2 min. The latex agglutination test was evaluated with groups of serum samples from patients with leptospirosis and control patients from Hawaii, the Seychelles, Thailand, and The Netherlands. The mean overall sensitivity was 82.3%, and the mean overall specificity was 94.6%. The assay is easy to perform and does not require special skills or equipment. The reagents have a long shelf life, even at tropical temperatures. Together, these factors make the assay suitable for use even at the peripheral level of a health care system as a rapid screening test for leptospirosis.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biomedical Research, Royal Tropical Institute, Meibergdreef 39, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Phone: 031 (0)20 5665470. Fax: 031 (0)20 6971841. E-mail: H.Smits{at}kit.nl.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, March 2000, p. 1272-1275, Vol. 38, No. 3
0095-1137/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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