Comparison of Four Clinical Specimen Types for Detection of Influenza A and B Viruses by Optical Immunoassay (FLU OIA Test) and Cell Culture Methods

DOI: 10.1128/JCM.37.12.3971-3974.1999

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Fig. 1.
Percentages of specimens positive by the FLU OIA test or 14-day culture taken from patients who were culture positive for influenza virus with any specimen type. NA, nasal aspirate; NPS, nasopharyngeal swab; TS, throat swab; SP, sputum; ∗, 95% confidence intervals.

Table 1.

Number and distribution of each specimen type donated and collected from each age group

Age (years)	No.^a of specimens of indicated type donated				Total no. (%) of specimens
Age (years)	Nasal aspirate	Nasopharyngeal swab	Throat swab	Sputum	Total no. (%) of specimens
0–16	45 (40.9)	36 (32.7)	18 (16.4)	11 (10)	110 (27.3)
17–54	33 (11.9)	102 (36.8)	90 (32.5)	52 (18.8)	277 (68.7)
≥55	1 (6.3)	4 (25.0)	4 (25.0)	7 (43.8)	16 (4.0)
Total	79 (19.6)	142 (35.2)	112 (27.8)	70 (17.4)	403 (100)^b

↵a The percentages of specimens by age group and sample type are in parentheses.
↵b A total of 404 specimens were donated. One patient report did not have an age provided; therefore, this specimen was not included in the table.

Table 2.

Comparison of the FLU OIA test to 14-day cell culture

Specimen type	Total no. of specimens	No. of specimens that were:				Sensitivity^a	Specificity^a
Specimen type	Total no. of specimens	OIA test⁺ and culture⁺	OIA test⁺ and culture⁻	OIA test⁻and culture⁺	OIA test⁻ and culture⁻	Sensitivity^a	Specificity^a
Nasal aspirate	79	38	11	5	25	88.4 (74.9–96.1)	69.4 (51.9–83.7)
Nasopharyngeal swab	143	35	24	7	77	83.3 (68.6–93.0)	76.2 (66.7–84.1)
Throat swab	112	18	17	11	66	62.1 (42.3–79.3)	79.5 (69.2–87.6)
Sputum	70	30	16	7	17	81.1 (64.8–92.0)	51.5 (33.5–69.2)
Total	404	121	68^b	30	185	80.1 (72.9–86.2)	73.1 (67.2–78.5)

↵a Sensitivities and specificities are shown as percentages; 95% confidence intervals (by the exact binomial method) are shown in parentheses.
↵b Thirty-two of these specimens were available for the RT-PCR-EHA; 21 of 32 were positive for influenza virus nucleic acid.