Comparative study for the detection of the hepatitis B surface antigen [HBsAg] by three different techniques

ABSTRACT

One hundred Serum samples referred to Ain Shams Specialized Hospital for hepatitis B surface antigen [HBsAg] determination were studied. Three different techniques were performed; Enzyme linked immunosorbant assay [ELISA], Reversed passive haemagglutination [RPHA] and Latex agglutination [LA]. Results showed that the sensitivity of RPHA [85.7%] is higher than that of LA [64.3%]. Therefore the high flalse negative rate of LA [35.7%] makes it unsuitable technique except for previously diagnosed cases or in life saving situations. However the relatively lower false negative rate of RPHA [14.3%] permits its use in small laboratories which could not afford the cost of ELISA technique