ABSTRACT
Three serological tests (ELISA NOVUM, ELISA PU and ToxocaraCHEK) were compared using excretory-secretory (ES) antigen of second stage larvae of Toxocara canis on two sets of sera from patients aged 1-15 years, living in town and in the country, suspected of having larval toxocarosis. Of 60 serum samples examined for the presence of anti-Toxocara IgM and IgG antibodies 35 (58.3%) were positive with ELISA NOVUM, 30 (50.0%) with ELISA PU and 37 (61.6%) with ToxocaraCHEK. A significantly higher seropositivity with all the tests was detected in group of patients from the village (test chi2, p < 0.005) when compared with patients from the town. The highest sensitivity (100%) was detected for a rapid qualitative ToxocaraCHEK. Compared with this screening test, both ELISA sets showed higher specificity but a lower sensitivity. Consistent findings (+;-) with ELISA NOVUM and ELISA PU were 88.3%; ELISA NOVUM and ToxocaraCHEK 96.7% and ELISA PU and ToxocaraCHEK 86.7%. This comparison indicates the suitability of ToxocaraCHEK set for screening for its simplicity and rapidity in detecting anti-Toxocara antibodies.
Subject(s)
Antibodies, Helminth/blood , Antigens, Helminth/immunology , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay , Helminth Proteins/immunology , Toxocara/immunology , Toxocariasis/diagnosis , Adolescent , Animals , Child , Child, Preschool , Cross Reactions , Humans , Immunoglobulin G/blood , Immunoglobulin M/blood , Infant , Reagent Kits, Diagnostic , Sensitivity and Specificity , Toxocara canis/immunologyABSTRACT
The authors present the case of a 18-year-old patient who reported deteriorated vision and mobile dark shadows on the left eye. Examination revealed in the vitreous body an extremely mobile filiform, worm-like formation, white in colour, of the size of an arteriole, about 9 mm long. In the course of hospitalization the formation was isolated by surgery of the pars plana vitrectomy and subjected to detailed helminthological examination. The worm was identified as Dirofilaria repens (Reillet et Henry 1911) and described in detail. The presented finding is the first finding of this parasite in this country and at the same time the first finding of this parasite in Czechoslovakia.
Subject(s)
Dirofilaria/isolation & purification , Dirofilariasis/diagnosis , Eye Infections, Parasitic/diagnosis , Vitreous Body/parasitology , Adolescent , Animals , Dirofilariasis/parasitology , Humans , MaleABSTRACT
A set of 2227 strains of Shigella sonnei isolated from dysentery patients in East-Slovakian region from 1975 through 1977 was analyzed by age and sex of patients, place and time of isolation, and by phage type, colicin type and antibiogram patterns of strains. The study showed that some phage types tended to occur in association with certain colicin types, the most common combination being that of phage type 75 and col factór Ei (86% of strains). In 1976 and 1977 this phage type gradually replaced col factor Ia that in 1975 was predominant. The rise in the incidence of these strains was striking and pointed to their intensive circulation among the population of East-Slovakian districts, particularly among children of preschool age. A hypothetic assumption is that such changes in the phage type and colicin type patterns might precede the new epidemic wave of dysentery outbreaks in the population. That would also explain e.g. the irregularity of dysentery epidemic cycles encountered in Czechoslovakia during the decade from 1972 through 1982. The analysis of strains by pattern of antibiogram showed that the percentage of strains resistant to all antimicrobials and sulphonamides tested remained virtually constant over the three years under study and did not exceed 6% of strains. Only the strains monoresistant to tetracycline were found to show a striking rise in their incidence from 5% in 1975 to 23% in 1977. In the majority of cases they were S. sonnei strains with col factor Ei.
