Rapid diagnosis of influenza A. Comparison with ELISA immunocapture and culture

The Directigen Flu-A is an enzyme immunoassay for detecting in 15 min the influenza A nucleoproteinic antigen directly from specimens after passive adsorption on a cellulose membrane. The test was assessed using 160 frozen (−20°C) specimens collected during the 1988–1989 A/H1N1 influenza epidemic and the 1989–1990 A/H3N2 epidemic. Compared to the ELISA immunocapture test, the sensitivity of the commercial test was 87.8% and the specificity was 97.6%. When compared to isolation of viruses on LLCMK2 cells and/or chicken embryo, the sensitivity was 84%. No cross-reaction was found with other respiratory disease viruses. The feasibility, practicability and rapidity of the test make it a test of choice for rapid diagnosis of influenza A.