Abstract
Among the tests in which T. pallidum is used as antigen, T. pallidum hemagglutination (TPHA) test and fluorescent treponemal antibody-absorption (FTA-ABS) are most commonly used for clinical serodiagnosis.
These tests need a complicated pretreatment of the sera (semi-quantitative method) as well as requiring special techniques, thus increasing the reaction time and affecting intra-and interassay precision studies unfavorable.
To overcome these problems, we evaluated latex agglutination test for T. Pallidum (TPLA) with Behring Nephelometer Analyzar (BNA).
The linearity of the TPLA ranged from 40 to 560 titer units (T. U.). Intra-and interassay pre-cision studies showed high reproducibility. Protentially interfering substances, such as bilirubin, hemoglobin and rheumatoid factor, did not affect the result.
There was a significant correlation between TPLA and TPHA (n=67, γ=0.85, p<0.001). The agreement between TPLA and TPHA for positive sera was 91%. Result of intra-and interassay, correlation with TPHA and the short reaction time (12 min compared to 2 hr for TPHA ) make TPLA a useful candidate for screening of serum treponemal antibody.
