Detection of rotavirus in faecal specimens by enzyme immunoassay, latex agglutination and electron microscopy

Faecal specimens from 570 patients with gastroenteritis were studied for rotaviruses by enzyme immunoassay (EIA), electron microscopy (EM) and latex agglutination test (LX). Specimens from 127 patients were positive and 379 were negative with all 3 methods. 64 (11%) specimens gave contradictory results in the tests. EIA gave significantly more positive results than EM (168 vs 145). 30 EM-negative and EIA-positive specimens were positive in a confirmatory test. LX was positive in 161 specimens and no significant differences to EM or EIA were observed. There were 16 (2.8%) LX-positive samples that were negative both in EM and EIA. The positivity of these samples could not be confirmed and 15 of them were only slightly positive. Our results can be concluded: (1) Enzyme immunoassay may be more sensitive than electron microscopy but requires a confirmatory test and is tedious when only a few specimens per day are to be examined; (2) LX seems to be suitable for primary screening of faecal specimens for rotavirus; for definitely positive results the test is reliable.