Detection of Schistosoma mansoni antibodies in a low-endemicity area using indirect immunofluorescence and circumoval precipitin test

• Published in: The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene 2014-06, Vol.90 (6), p.1146-1152
• Main Authors: Carvalho do Espírito-Santo, Maria Cristina, Pinto, Pedro Luiz, Gargioni, Cybele, Alvarado-Mora, Monica Viviana, Pagliusi Castilho, Vera Lúcia, Pinho, João Ranato Rebello, de Albuquerque Luna, Expedito José, Borges Gryschek, Ronaldo Cesar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Animals; Antibodies, Helminth - blood; Brazil; Child; Child, Preschool; Cross-Sectional Studies; Feces - parasitology; Female; Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect - methods; Humans; Immunoglobulin M - blood; Infant; Male; Middle Aged; Precipitin Tests - methods; Schistosoma mansoni; Schistosoma mansoni - immunology; Schistosoma mansoni - isolation & purification; Schistosomiasis mansoni - diagnosis; Schistosomiasis mansoni - parasitology; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0002-9637; 1476-1645
• DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.13-0746

Parasitological diagnostic methods for schistosomiasis lack sensitivity, especially in regions of low endemicity. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Schistosoma mansoni infections by antibody detection using the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA-IgM) and circumoval precipitin test (COPT). Serum samples of 572 individuals were randomly selected. The IFA-IgM and COPT were used to detect anti-S. mansoni antibodies. Of the patients studied, 15.9% (N = 91) were IFA-IgM positive and 5.1% (N = 29) had COPT reactions (P < 0.001 by McNemar's test). Immunodiagnostic techniques showed higher infection prevalence than had been previously estimated. This study suggests that combined use of these diagnostic tools could be useful for the diagnosis of schistosomiasis in epidemiological studies in areas of low endemicity.