title: Limitations of the standard agglutination test for detecting patients with Brucella melitensis bacteremia.
abstract: The sensitivity of the standard agglutination test (SAT) for detecting brucellosis was determined in 264 Israeli patients from whom a positive blood culture for Brucella melitensis and serology were obtained within ± 1 week. A SAT titer ≥1:160 had a diagnostic sensitivity of 91.7%, whereas raising the cutoff to ≥1:320, as recommended to decrease false-positive rates in endemic areas, reduced the sensitivity to 82.6%. Physicians working in regions endemic for brucellosis should be aware of the limitations of the SAT for detecting patients with the disease.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, Soroka University Medical Center, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel.
authors.forename: Ari A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Shemesh
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yagupsky
mesh_terms: D000372:Agglutination Tests / Q000592:standards*; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology; D017347:Brucella melitensis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity