Comparative evaluation of a latex agglutination test, two Elisa kits and a western blot kit for the serodiagnosis of human trichinellosis

Serology is a helpful test for the diagnosis of human trichinellosis because clinical signs of this disease (fever and myalgias) are non specific. A lot of techniques have been studied but very few are commercialized and have been comparatively evaluated. We report here the performances of 4 commercially available kits; two Elisa tests, on western blot test & one latex agglutination test. The specificity and sensitivity of the different tests were assayed on 60 sera from patients with a proven trichinellosis and on 70 controls. The four tests had a 100% sensitivity. The specificity was of 98.6% for the western blot of 93% for the latex agglutination test and of 87 & 77% for the two Elisa tests. Cross reactions are mainly observed in patients with other helminthic infections.