Latex agglutination test for detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae antigen in cerebrospinal fluid

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from 103 individuals was examined for the presence of Streptococcus pneumoniae antigen by an in-house developed latex agglutination (LA) test and compared with a commercially available LA kit. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of the in-house developed LA test was comparable with that of the commercial LA kit. No cross reaction was observed with culture positive CSF samples. Among clinically suspected but culture negative cases, 1.9% CSF samples were either positive for Neisseria meningitidis antigen or Haemophilus influenzae antigen. The results indicate that the LA test is a simple, rapid, and useful test, which can be prepared in any ordinary laboratory.