title: Serodiagnosis of melioidosis in Malaysia.
abstract: Current diagnosis of melioidosis is based on bacterial culture and/or serology which is becoming increasingly useful. An IgM-ELISA using heat-killed whole cells of Pseudomonas pseudomallei was developed and compared with an indirect haemagglutination technique (IHAT) and an indirect immunofluorescent technique(IFAT). The IgM-ELISA using a P:N ratio of > or = 2 had a sensitivity of 91% and a specificity of 96%. All 3 assays were further used in a seroepidemiological survey amongst different groups of patients and healthy individuals. It was found that the IFAT performed better than the IHAT, detecting antibodies to P. pseudomallei in 6% of diabetics, 5% of pyrexics, 8% of pregnant women and 3% of farmers. For the same groups the IgM-ELISA detected antibodies in 1% of pyrexics, 8% of pregnant women and a further 14% of farmers. The IgM-ELISA was found to be sensitive and useful for the serological diagnosis of acute melioidosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vadivelu
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Puthucheary
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Gendeh
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Parasakthi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000379:methods*; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008554:Melioidosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies