Determination of teichoic acid antibody for the diagnosis of pediatric staphylococcal infections.

Determination of teichoic acid antibodies by Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) was done in 39 patients with Staphylococcus aureus infections and 151 patients who did not have a history of serious staphylococcal infections. The latter who were treated for other diseases served as controls. Various levels of teichoic acid antibodies below 1:3,200 were detected in controls while significantly higher levels were seen in patients with Staphylococcus aureus infections.