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Estimation of incidence of respiratory syncytial virus infection in schoolchildren using salivary antibodies
Author(s) -
Wilson Steven D.,
Roberts Kathryn,
Hammond Karen,
Ayres Jon G.,
Cane Patricia A.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of medical virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1096-9071
pISSN - 0146-6615
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9071(200005)61:1<81::aid-jmv13>3.0.co;2-o
Subject(s) - saliva , antibody , incidence (geometry) , virology , virus , respiratory system , pneumovirinae , immunology , vaccination , medicine , viral disease , biology , paramyxoviridae , physics , optics
An assay for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)–specific IgG in saliva is described. The assay was used to examine the incidence of RSV infection in schoolchildren 7–10 years old during one RSV season. One hundred and twenty‐one volunteer children provided saliva samples in October 1997 and March 1998; 18% of the children showed a fourfold or greater rise in anti‐RSV IgG in the second sample. This prevalence of antibody increase is similar to that described in previous studies that measured CFT levels in serum samples. Overall, the children who showed rises in antibody levels, indicating that they had experienced an RSV infection, had lower levels of RSV‐specific antibody in their preseason samples than those who showed no increase ( P = 0.0018). These results show that saliva is an adequate substitute for serum in some antibody tests and may be useful for community studies. Such studies may provide surrogate markers for susceptibility to infection, which should benefit the planning of vaccination strategies. J. Med. Virol. 61:81–84, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.