Open AccessEvaluation of a simple and rapid dipstick assay for the diagnosis of typhoid fever in Indonesia
Author(s) -
Muhammad Hussein Gasem,
Henk L. Smits,
Marga G. A. Goris,
W.M.V. Dolmans
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of medical microbiology/journal of medical microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1473-5644
pISSN - 0022-2615
DOI - 10.1099/0022-1317-51-2-173
Subject(s) - typhoid fever , dipstick , salmonella typhi , blood culture , medicine , dengue fever , widal test , salmonella , virology , immunology , microbiology and biotechnology , antibiotics , urine , biology , bacteria , biochemistry , genetics , escherichia coli , gene
To support the clinical diagnosis of typhoid fever in Indonesia, where most hospitals and health centres have no facilities for culture, a rapid dipstick assay for the detection of Salmonella typhi-specific IgM antibodies was evaluated on serum samples from 127 patients clinically suspected of having typhoid fever. In a single blood sample collected on admission to hospital, the sensitivity of the dipstick assay was 69.8% when compared with bone marrow culture and 86.5% when compared with blood culture. The specificity as calculated for the group of patients with suspected typhoid fever but a negative culture result was calculated to be 88.9%. Of 80 patients with febrile illnesses other than typhoid fever, reactivity was observed in only three patients with dengue haemorrhagic fever. The assay uses stabilised components that can be stored outside the refrigerator, does not require special equipment, and may be of use in remote health facilities that have no culture facilities.