Low positive predictive value of anti-Brugia malayi IgG and IgG4 serology for the diagnosis of Wuchereria bancrofti

• Published in: Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Vol. 88; no. 6; pp. 661 - 662
• Main Authors: Chanteau, S., Glaziou, P., Moulia-Pelat, J.P., Plichart, C., Luquiaud, P., Cartel, J.L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 01.11.1994; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Animals; Antibodies, Helminth - blood; Antigens, Helminth - blood; Biological and medical sciences; Brugia malayi - immunology; Diseases caused by nematodes; Elephantiasis, Filarial - diagnosis; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Filariases; Helminthic diseases; Humans; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Infectious diseases; Lymphatic filariases; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Onchocerca - immunology; Parasitic diseases; Predictive Value of Tests; Sensitivity and Specificity; Tropical medicine; Wuchereria bancrofti; Polynesia; Oceania; French Polynesia; Human; Lymphatic system; Prevalence; Antibody; IgG; Serology; Wuchereria bancrofti; Parasitosis; Helminthiasis; Infection; Nematod disease; Helmintha; Nemathelminthia; Diagnosis; Filariosis; Invertebrata; Nematoda; ELISA assay
• ISSN: 0035-9203; 1878-3503
• DOI: 10.1016/0035-9203(94)90217-8

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (Elisas) for anti-Brugia malayi immunoglobulin (Ig) G and IgG4 were evaluated on sera from 1561 subjects in French Polynesia for the serodiagnosis of Wuchereria bancrofti filariasis, compared with the test for Onchocerca gibsoni circulating antigen (Og4C3) as a ‘gold standard’. The sensitivity of the elisa-IgG and elisa-IgG4 assays was 90.8% and 94.5%, and the specificity was 45.9% and 50.7%. The positive predictive values were 41% and 45% respectively for an antigen prevalence rate of 30%. Thus antibody prevalences exceeded by two-fold the antigen prevalence, which itself exceeded by two-fold the prevalence of microfilaraemia.