Abstract
Making a specific viral diagnosis is limited by the time, expense and expertise required. Recent developments in the area of rapid viral diagnosis, Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay (ELISA), have surmounted these difficulties. ELISA requires no expensive equipment and provides an answer in hours. In research laboratories the specificity and sensitivity of ELISA in identification of Rotavirus (RV) has been demonstrated. Studies have shown that over 50% of children hospitalized with dehydration from diarrhea in the winter excrete rotavirus while the prevalence of rotavirus in ambulatory patients with diarrhea is less than 15%. Therefore, an outpatient with diarrhea and excreting rotavirus is at high risk for dehydration.
We are evaluating the applicability of ELISA in a pediatric outpatient (POP) lab which routinely performs limited office procedures. A laboratory technician (MLT) performed all procedures. To test the ability of an MLT to accurately perform ELISA for RV, stool samples known to be (+) or (-) for RV by EM and ELISA, were blindly submitted with other stool specimens to the laboratory. The ELISA procedure was performed on 87 specimens: 69 clinical specimens and 18 “unknown” specimens. There were 13 positive clinical samples and 16 of the 18 unknowns were correctly interpreted. The entire procedure requires 6 hr/45 min. Actual MLT time was 1 hr/45 min. Rapid Viral Diagnosis could become an inexpensive available technique for outpatient diagnosis. Rotavirus ELISA could be useful in identifying children at high risk for dehydration.
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Murphy, M., Macias, G. & Brunell, P. 1048 RAPID VIRAL DIAGNOSIS IN AN OUTPATIENT LABORATORY. Pediatr Res 15 (Suppl 4), 617 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198104001-01074
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198104001-01074