title: Passive particle agglutination test for screening of Treponema Pallidum antibodies in blood bank routine.
abstract: In most laboratories and blood banks, the TP.PA test has replaced the TPHA test for the screening of Treponema pallidum antibodies. In this study we show that the 1:20 serum dilution should be used to discriminate between negative and positive samples instead of the recommended 1:40 dilution, thus increasing sensitivity without a significant loss of specificity.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorium voor bacteriologie en virologie Universitair Ziekenhuis, De Pintelaan, Gent.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: De Bleser
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Van Renterghem
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vandekerckhove
mesh_terms: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D001771:Blood Banks / Q000592:standards*; D001782:Blood Donors; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000382:microbiology; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013587:Syphilis / Q000382:microbiology; D014210:Treponema pallidum / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial