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Evaluation of a rapid IgM detection test for diagnosis of acute leptospirosis in dogs
Author(s) -
Lizer J.,
Grahlmann M.,
Hapke H.,
Velineni S.,
Lin D.,
Kohn B.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
veterinary record
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.261
H-Index - 99
eISSN - 2042-7670
pISSN - 0042-4900
DOI - 10.1136/vr.104134
Subject(s) - leptospirosis , medicine , vaccination , leptospira , direct agglutination test , context (archaeology) , immunology , serology , antibody , virology , biology , paleontology
Recently, a lateral flow assay (LFA) for detection of Leptospira ‐specific IgM in canine sera became commercially available in Europe. The present study aims to evaluate the diagnostic performance of this assay using canine sera from a collection of diagnostic accessions. Diagnostic sensitivity was assessed by testing 37 acute‐phase and 9 corresponding convalescent‐phase sera from dogs with a confirmed diagnosis of leptospirosis. Specificity was determined by testing sera from sick dogs with non‐leptospiral infections (n=15) and healthy dogs with incomplete history of vaccination (n=45). During acute phase of illness, LFA scored positive for 28/37 sera with a sensitivity of 75.7 per cent while only 9/37 (24.3 per cent) samples were positive on microscopic agglutination test. The specificity of the LFA was 98.3 per cent (59/60). This test showed 89.7 and 100 per cent overall agreements with clinical diagnosis for acute‐phase and convalescent‐phase sera, respectively. The impact of vaccination on the LFA was also determined and vaccine‐stimulated IgM responses were negative in 19/25 (76 per cent) dogs at 12 weeks post vaccination. In conclusion, the LFA is a rapid and reliable test for early detection of Leptospira ‐specific IgM during acute phase of canine leptospirosis. However, interpretation of a positive result must be made in the context of clinical signs and vaccination history.