Rapid Diagnosis Of Rubella By Demonstrating Rubella-Specific Igm Antibodies In The Serum By Indirect Immunofluorescence

Summary The normal responses of rubella-specific IgM and IgG antibodies were studied in eight patients with proven rubella by the indirect immunofluorescent technique. To evaluate the detection of rubella-specific IgM for diagnosis, a “blind” study of sera from 13 other patients with proven rubella was carried out and the method proved to be 100 per cent, reliable. Its sensitivity was compared with virus isolation and with direct immunofluorescent staining of virus antigen in infected cells from throat swabs.