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Updated: Jul 13, 2026
The α-test: Rapid Cell-free CD4 Enumeration Using Whole Saliva
Published on: May 16, 2012
Finger-prick blood samples can be used interchangeably with venous samples for CD4 cell counting indicating their
Calman A MacLennan1, Joep J G van Oosterhout, Sarah A White
1Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Programme, College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi.
Abstract:
The objective of this study was to investigate the utility of finger-prick blood samples for CD4 cell counting. We estimated agreement between CD4 cell counts in paired finger-prick and venous samples from 110 HIV-infected adults from Malawi. Bias was 6.6 cells/microl (limits of agreement -50.7 and 63.7 cells/microl) for absolute counts and 0.71% (limits of agreement -2.07 and 3.48%) for %CD4/lymphocyte suggesting that finger-prick blood samples can be used interchangeably with venous samples for CD4 cell counting.
