Rapid serologic diagnosis of dengue virus infection using a commercial capture ELISA that distinguishes primary and secondary infections

A commercial capture ELISA for specific IgM and IgG antibodies produced dur ing dengue infection (PanBio Dengue Due) showed excellent sensitivity (99%, n = 78) using sera collected at hospital discharge compared with establish ed ELISA and hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assays. Furthermore, the ELI SA was able to diagnose 79% of the dengue cases using sera collected at hos pital admission. The ELISA also showed high specificity (92%) in paired ser a from patients without flavivirus infection (n = 26), although 45% of the patients with Japanese encephalitis (n = 20) showed elevation of IgG but no t IgM. The IgG capture ELISA showed good correlation with the HAI assay (r = 0.83, P < 0.0001), and IgG levels could be used to distinguish between pr imary and secondary infection, with 100% of primary infections and 96% of s econdary infections being correctly classified. This ELISA should prove use ful in the clinical diagnosis of dengue infections.