Swine dysentery (SD) caused by the intestinal spirochete Brachyspira hyodysenteriae is an economically important disease in pig-producing countries throughout the world. To date, no specific serologic assay is commercially available for the diagnosis of pigs with SD. Several serologic techniques have been identified in the past; however, these tests have all used either whole-cell proteins or l...

We investigated an outbreak of Coxsackie B4 arthritis in a neonatal unit involving 20 neonates and 12 staff members, over an eight-month period. Laboratory investigations, serology tests, indicate that the outbreak was caused by Coxsackie B4 virus. Contamination of one of the overhead water reservoirs, supplying the nursery, was responsible. After the water tanks were cleaned out, no new cases ...

The occurrence of leprosy has decreased in the world but the perspective of its elimination has been questioned. A proposed control measure is the use of post-exposure chemoprophylaxis (PEP) among contacts, but there are still questions about its operational aspects. In this text we discuss the evidence available in literature, explain some concepts in epidemiology commonly used in the research...

The value of various serological tests in the diagnosis of paracoccidioidomycosis was studied. Quantitative agar-gel immunodiffusion and indirect immunofluorescent tests were performed, and the results were compared with those of complement fixation and qualitative agar-gel procedures. The quantitative immunodiffusion procedure was found to serve as the simplest and safest quantitative test tha...

Serologic tests are universally accepted as an indispensable tool for diagnosing visceral leishmaniasis at health care facilities. Additionally, serodiagnosis is the most valuable single procedure in any surveillance program, since it permits rapid screening of large populations in remote areas without clinical evaluation, yields incidence data for the population, and provides an efficient mean...

Sir,?In the December 1943 issue of the Indian Medical Gazette under the article on ' Concerning the ?Wassermann Reaction' I fail to see why smallpox vaccination as one of the causes producing false positive reactions has not been mentioned. Hence will you please publish the following in your valuable monthly :? False positive syphilitic reactions have been attributed to numerous causes, with sm...

We assessed the performance of a recently validated real-time PCR assay and a commercially available microimmunofluorescence serologic test for the detection of Chlamydophila pneumoniae infection during an outbreak. Evaluation of specimens from 137 individuals suggests that real-time PCR holds greater utility as a diagnostic tool for early C. pneumoniae detection.

A biological classification has been made of thirty strains of Friedländer's bacillus. This study reveals that there exist among these strains three sharply defined and specific types and one heterogeneous group. The three types are Type A, fifteen strains; Type B, six strains; Type C, three strains; and Group X, six strains. The agglutination, agglutinin adsorption, protection, thread, and pre...

The importance of syphilis serological tests demands that laboratory reports are reliable. Internal quality control applied to the organisation of a syphilis serology service improves laboratory bench performance and reporting. Described here are internal quality control procedures of a department that serves a genitourinary medicine clinic and conducts 70 000 tests a year to investigate for sy...

Between July 7 and 18, 1991, five boys from a small town in rural Illinois experienced the onset of an acute febrile illness subsequently confirmed as leptospirosis by serologic tests. A cohort study found that swimming in a small swimming hole, Steel Tunnel Pond, was associated with disease (P < 0.01), the attack rate being 28%. Leptospira interrogans serovar grippotyphosa was isolated from ur...