Serological diagnosis of strongyloidiasis: An evaluation of three commercial assays
Strongyloidiasis is caused by a neglected nematode, manifesting as chronic intestinal infection with potentially severe manifestations. The disease is an emerging problem in non-endemic countries affecting travelers and migrants. Diagnosis of strongyloidiasis is hampered by the lack of standardizati...
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Published in | PLoS neglected tropical diseases Vol. 18; no. 7; p. e0012319 |
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Main Authors | , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
United States
Public Library of Science
05.07.2024
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Strongyloidiasis is caused by a neglected nematode, manifesting as chronic intestinal infection with potentially severe manifestations. The disease is an emerging problem in non-endemic countries affecting travelers and migrants. Diagnosis of strongyloidiasis is hampered by the lack of standardization and absence of a gold standard. Since adequate direct methods to detect the motile larvae in stool samples are not widely available, other techniques such as serology have been developed.
We evaluated three commercial ELISA kits (DRG Instruments, IVD Research, and Bordier Affinity Products) to detect IgG antibodies against Strongyloides stercoralis assays utilizing serum samples from travelers with microscopically confirmed strongyloidiasis (n = 50) and other imported helminthic infections (n = 159) as well as healthy controls (n = 50).
The DRG, IVD, and Bordier assays showed sensitivities of 58.0%, 64.0%, and 56.0%, respectively. Specificity values were 96.0%, 96.0%, and 92.0% in healthy controls, and 67.3%, 62.9%, and 76.7% in cases with other helminth infections, respectively. Cross-reactions were mostly observed in cases with other nematodes (37.5%, 42.5%, and 20.0%, respectively), but also in trematode (33.3%, 38.1%, and 19.0%, respectively) and in cestode infections (25.0%, 30.0%, and 32.5%, respectively).
The study demonstrates the diagnostic limitations of serological assays to detect or exclude cases of strongyloidiasis in returning travelers, who frequently present with recent or acute infections. |
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Bibliography: | new_version ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 ObjectType-Undefined-3 Current address: Laboratorio Clínico, Clínica Alemana, Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile Current address: Instituto de Ciencias e Innovación en Medicina (ICIM), Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile Current address: Global Public Health Program, Technische Hochschule Deggendorf, European Campus Rottal Inn, Pfarrkirchen, Germany The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. |
ISSN: | 1935-2735 1935-2727 1935-2735 |
DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pntd.0012319 |