Infrequent detection of lipoarabinomannan antibodies in human immunodeficiency virus-associated mycobacterial disease. Swiss HIV Cohort Study

A commercially available test for the serologic diagnosis of tuberculosis was evaluated for its applicability in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients. Antibodies to lipoarabinomannan were detectable in sera from only 9 of 85 HIV-positive patients with a confirmed diagnosis of tuberculosis. Given the low degree of sensitivity of the assay with sera from HIV-infected patients, the study does not support the use of this serologic assay for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in HIV-infected patients.