[IgG anti-multiantigen sonicate of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mts) measured by ELISA-Mts]

Laboratory diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) is often difficult. In recent years the detection of TB by serologic means has been the subject of a number of investigations. We studied the diagnostic utility of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in pulmonary tuberculosis. Two serological tests, commercial Pathozyme-Myco IgG (Omega Diagn.), and self-prepared ELISA-Mts using mycobacteria sonicate were evaluated simultaneously with 132 serum samples. Frequency and level of anti-mycobacterial IgG were compared in sera from 68 patients with TB and in sera from 64 healthy volunteers. The sensitivities of the tests with sera from TB patients were, respectively 55.9% and 70.6%. The specificities of these tests were respectively 98.5% and 84.4%. By combining two tests, a maximum sensitivity of 76.5% was obtained with reciprocal drops in specificity to 82.8%. Despite that, it has been suggested that combinations of different antigens were attempted in order to improve the diagnostic yield.