A comparative evaluation of screening hepatitis b surface antigen by enzyme- linked immunosorbent assay and rapid card test

Author: 
Praveen Kumar Gautam, Anuj Kumar Tyagi, Kiran Yadav and Sanjeev Kumar Tripathi*

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the major causes of death in developing countries. The most important marker for diagnosis is detection of Hepatitis B surface antigen in blood. Objective: The aim of present study was to compare two different brand rapid card test kits (Brand A and Brand B) for screening of hepatitis B virus infection with gold standard enzyme linked immunosorbent assay method. Method: This study was conducted in Department of Microbiology at government Medical College and associated hospital for a period of 6 months. Result: Out of 4200 blood samples tested for hepatitis B surface B antigen (HBsAg), 89 (2.09%) were positive by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 87 (2.04%) positive by Brand A rapid card and 86 (2.02%) were positive by Brand B rapid card. The sensitivity of rapid card test Brand A was 97.75%, specificity was 100%, positive predictive value was 97.75%, negative predictive value was 99.95%, and diagnostic accuracy was 99.95%. The sensitivity of rapid card test Brand B was 96.62%, specificity was 100%, positive predictive value was 96.63%, negative predictive value was 99.93%, and diagnostic accuracy was 99.93%.Conclusion: The sensitivity and specificity of both brands rapid card test (Brand A and Brand B) is comparable with ELISA. These rapid kits are easy to perform and less cheap in compare with cost of ELISA. There use should be encourages at rural area where cannotafford the cost of ELISA test so that the patient should be channelized faster towards specific and accurate diagnosis.

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DOI: 
http://dx.doi.org/10.24327/ijcar.2019. 20296.3660
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