Comparison of the Ide and Harris (VDRL) slide flocculation tests in Nigeria.

For over 10 years the Ide test has been in use in Nigeria as a simple slide flocculation test for syphilis and yaws in hospitals and clinics, and in the field, where the Kahn and Wassermann tests are impracticable. It was thought desirable that the results obtained by the Ide test should be compared with those obtained by the newly introduced Harris (VDRL) slide flocculation test, and an estimate made of the relative values of the two tests for use in the field. The sera of 8,077 Nigerian subjects were therefore tested in parallel by the Ide, Harris, and Kahn tests. The Kahn test was used as the basis on which the comparison should be made for two reasons: