Anti-hepatitis A virus immunoglobulin M antibodies in urine samples for rapid diagnosis of outbreaks.
The main goal of this study was to test the feasibility of using urine for diagnosing hepatitis A virus (HAV) infections. A correlation of 90.78% between the test results of urine and serum samples was obtained. Four outbreaks of hepatitis A were confirmed by testing only urine samples. The levels of anti-HAV immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies in urine samples remained stable during 6 months of storage at -70 degrees C but decreased when the samples were stored at 4 degrees C. The results of tests of samples obtained 2 and 6 months after infection suggested that IgM levels decline more rapidly in urine than in serum.
Rodríguez Lay
Licel de los Angeles
Lde L
Institute for Tropical Medicine Pedro Kourí, Department of Virology, National Reference Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis, Havana City, Cuba. licel@ipk.sld.cu
Larralde Díaz
Osmany
O
Martínez Casanueva
Raiza
R
Gutiérrez Moreno
Aidonis
A
D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015925:Cryopreservation; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006506:Hepatitis A / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies / Q000652:urine*; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000652:urine*; D013997:Time Factors
D035922:Hepatitis A Antibodies; D007075:Immunoglobulin M