The Sensitivity Comparison of Immunodiagnostic Assays for Diagnosing Dengue Fever

Abstract

Dengue fever is a vector borne disease caused by a dengue virus. It is an RNA virus of the family flaviviridae, with different serotypes. Herein, we report our attempt to carry out a sensitivity comparison of immunodiagnostic assays for dengue fever in dengue positive patients. Blood samples from 189 volunteers were collected. To determine the sensitivity of the NS1 test, two different types of tests — immunochromatographic tri-line test and rapid dengue test (RDT) — as well as IgM and IgG capture ELISA were performed. The result of RDT has shown that 59.7% of volunteers were IgM positive and 50.2% were IgG positive. Conversely, the results from capture ELISA shows 79.8% and 59.7% for IgM and IgG, respectively. The sensitivity of the capture ELISA test for IgM and IgG was higher than that of immunochromatographic tri-line rapid test, but the specificity was lower. Therefore, to confirm dengue fever, we recommend performing more detailed, investigative tests since a single test may not be sufficient.