title: Testing of saliva for antibodies to HIV-1.
abstract: To determine whether saliva is a potentially useful sample for screening for HIV infection when serum is not obtainable, saliva and serum samples from 50 HIV-infected and 50 uninfected subjects were tested for antibody to HIV-1 (anti-HIV-1) using a second-generation enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA; Abbott) and prototype antibody-capture ELISA (Wellcome). Of saliva specimens from HIV-infected people, six gave negative results on the Abbott and one on the Wellcome assays; all specimens from uninfected people were negative by both assays. Sensitivity for the Abbott assay was therefore 88.0% [95% confidence interval (Cl) 76.2-94.4%], an unacceptable level for screening purposes. Sensitivity for the Wellcome assay was 98% (95% Cl 89.5-99.6%), a more satisfactory level for population screening. Further validation of this technique is necessary, and of methods for collection of saliva specimens in particular.
authors.affiliation: Macfarlane Burnet Centre for Medical Research, Fairfield Hospital, Australia.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Crofts
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nicholson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Coghlan
authors.forename: I D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Gust
mesh_terms: D015492:AIDS Serodiagnosis; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005188:False Negative Reactions; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012463:Saliva / Q000276:immunology*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies