title: Comparison of immunofluorescence with enzyme immunoassay for detection of Q fever.
abstract: To evaluate enzyme immunoassay (EIA) as an alternative to indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) to screen for Q fever in humans, 157 serum samples from patients suspected of having the disease were tested for immunoglobulin G antibodies to Coxiella burnetii. The agreement between the tests and the sensitivity of EIA were excellent (96.8% and 98.4%, respectively) when an IFA titer of > 1/160 was considered positive. All serum samples with a titer of > 1/320 in the IFA were also positive by the EIA. The EIA seems to be an acceptable alternative to IFA for screening for Q fever.
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Department, La Paz Universitary Hospital, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: D'Harcourt
authors.forename: A B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Soto
authors.forename: V C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Burgos
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Calero
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Martínez-Zapico
mesh_terms: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D016997:Coxiella burnetii / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D011778:Q Fever / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial