title: Interlaboratory reliability of microimmunofluorescence test for measurement of Chlamydia pneumoniae-specific immunoglobulin A and G antibody titers.
abstract: To evaluate the reliability of Chlamydia pneumoniae-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgA antibody titers as measured by the microimmunofluorescence (MIF) test, we compared results from 392 individuals using a standard MIF protocol at two academic laboratories. The kappas for dichotomous titers (>/=16 versus <16) were 0.39 for IgA and 0.53 for IgG. Measurement error likely attenuates C. pneumoniae-disease associations; the magnitude of attenuation can be estimated from results of studies such as this one.
authors.affiliation: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Ave. North, M4 B402, Seattle, WA 98109-1024, USA. alittman@fhcrc.org
authors.forename: Alyson J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Littman
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: Mark D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Thornquist
authors.forename: Charlotte A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Gaydos
authors.forename: Thomas L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Vaughan
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D023521:Chlamydophila Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology; D016993:Chlamydophila pneumoniae / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000097:blood*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D007074:Immunoglobulin G