Clinical utility of serodiagnosis of tuberculosis.
The use of TB-ELISA tests as a diagnostic tool offer a lot of scope in early diagnosis of serious forms of childhood tuberculosis. The characteristics of these tests have improved with the availability of purified and recombinant antigens and competition assays using monoclonal antibodies. Lower antibody titres to M. tuberculosis specific antigens in children and the presence of 'natural exposure' antibodies make the interpretation of these tests difficult at times. Caution must be exercised in interpreting their results due to problems inherent on currently available methods of TB-immunodiagnosis. The selection of best combination of antigens for serology, prospective clinical trials comparing success rate of serology with the standard different diagnostic procedures are required.
Mahadevan
S
S
Department of Pediatrics, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Pondicherry.
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012698:Serologic Tests / Q000379:methods; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial