Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 25, 2025
Dried Blood Spots - Preparing and Processing for Use in Immunoassays and in Molecular Techniques
Published on: March 13, 2015
Comparison between a rapid diagnostic test and dried blood spot-based immunoassay for hepatitis B surface antigen
Sumiyo Okawa1, Kenichi Komada1, Yasunori Ichimura1
1Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Sumiyo Okawa, 1-21-1, Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan.
Objectives:
This study aimed to determine the agreement between a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) and a dried blood spot (DBS)-based electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA) of hepatitis B surface antigen and to compare the costs of conducting serosurveys using RDTs and DBS in a field setting.
Methods:
A serosurvey was conducted in the South Central Coast region of Vietnam in May 2019. Participants aged 1-39 years were recruited using a four-stage random sampling method and tested for hepatitis B surface antigen using an RDT kit (Alere Determine) and a DBS-based ECLIA. The agreement between the RDT and the DBS-based ECLIA was assessed using cross-tabulation and Cohen kappa. Cost data were categorized by input (personnel, transportation, field consumables, laboratory consumables, and capital item/overhead) and survey phase (survey preparation, data/biospecimen collection, laboratory testing, and coordination).
Results:
A total of 2072 participants were analyzed. There was a 99% agreement between the RDT and the DBS-based ECLIA results, with a Cohen kappa of 0.9. The estimated cost of conducting a serosurvey by DBS was UD $75,291, whereas RDT was $53,182.
Conclusion:
RDTs and DBS-based ECLIA provide test results with high agreements. RDTs are a better option in terms of cost, whereas the DBS-based ECLIA may be useful when evaluating multiple infectious diseases.
