Antinuclear Antibody Tests as a Clinically Selected Screening Procedure

The use of a “whole-nuclei,” single-dilution, antinuclear antibody test as a clinically elective laboratory screening procedure was examined retrospectively. When used in this manner, 21% of the serum samples tested were positive and 26% of the positive tests represented repeat evaluations. The diagnosis and clinical and laboratory findings of 533 patients with demonstrable antinuclear antibodies were correlated. Of these, 72% had rheumatic disease, 47% were diagnosed as having rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus, and 16% were diagnosed as having primary hepatic disease or drug-induced lupus erythematosus. A speckled nuclear pattern was found to be least specific, and other nuclear patterns suggested certain diagnostic clusters.