A comparison of the ELISA with other serological tests in the serodiagnosis of amoebiasis

The sera of 78 patients with invasive amoebiasis were tested for antiamoebic antibodies by the techniques of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), indirect haemagglutination (IHA), indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) and counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIEP). Results showed that the ELISA compared favourably with IHA and IFA tests in terms of sensitivity and specificity. ELISA, IHA and IFA detected 97.4%, 96.2% and 98.7% of the patients respectively. CIEP was the least sensitive of the 4 serological methods with a sensitivity of 88.5%. The advantages and disadvantages of the 4 serodiagnostic procedures are discussed.