Anti-HDV enzyme immunoassay index in predicting HDV viremia in serum samples

Authors: SİBEL ÖZSU CAYMAZ, AYÇA ARZU SAYINER, AYŞE AYDAN ÖZKÜTÜK, YUSUF HAKAN ABACIOĞLU

Abstract: To determine whether the total anti-delta antibody enzyme immunoassay (EIA) test results can be used to predict viremia. Materials and methods: The EIA index value of an anti-delta total antibody assay was determined in 76 serum samples obtained from 67 patients positive for the anti-hepatitis delta virus (HDV) antibody. The presence of HDV RNA was investigated by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The relation between the RT-PCR result and EIA index was evaluated by ROC analysis. Results: Of the 76 total samples, 56 (74%) anti-HDV-positive samples were found to be PCR-positive. The samples with EIA index values below 75.75 were PCR-negative, while samples with index values above 102.55 were PCR-positive. When HDV RNA presence is considered as the gold standard, the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the chosen EIA index (100.10) in predicting viremia were 93%, 80%, 93%, and 76%, respectively. Conclusion: HDV RNA is the most reliable marker for the diagnosis of active HDV infection, and EIA index value is closely related to viral RNA presence.

Keywords: Anti-HDV enzyme immunoassay, ROC analysis, HDV RNA, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction

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