title: Can pooling be used for seroprevalence studies of hepatitis C?
abstract: Two hepatitis C antibody assays were used to test diluted positive sera. Dilutions of 1 in 5, 1 in 10, and 1 in 20 all resulted in loss of reactivity, with the greatest losses occurring in samples with low and moderate reactivities. These results disqualify pooling as a strategy for seroprevalence studies and screening programs.
authors.affiliation: Diagnostic Virology and Reference Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Stephens
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Raboud
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Karakas
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Sherlock
mesh_terms: D001800:Blood Specimen Collection / Q000379:methods*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies