CLINICAL EVALUATION OF THE LATEX FLOCCULATION TEST FOR PREGNANCY

Simultaneous pregnancy tests were run on duplicate specimens of urine by the Friedman method and the latex flocculation method on 329 patients. Clinical correlation was available in 245 of these patients. The latex test had a sensitivity of 77 per cent and a specificity of 92 per cent in the overall diagnosis of pregnancy. The Friedman test had corresponding values of 93 per cent and 97 per cent, respectively. Not until the second month of pregnancy did the latex test become sensitive enough for practical use. The Friedman test, which takes 48 hours, is more sensitive and specific for the determination of pregnancy than the in vitro latex flocculation test, the results of which are known in four hours.