El examen serológico con muestras de sangre obtenidas en papel de filtro

Resumen

We have perfected a technique for obtaining whole blood on filter paper for serological investigation of diseases of rabbits: RHVD; Encephalitozoon; Chlamydia psittaci and Myxomatosis and it is being proposed as alternative sampling method for determination of antibodies, as it is a simple method and does not require much care in sending samples to the laboratory. We evaluated serum samples from 94 rabbits arrived at the laboratory for the diagnosis of the conditions mentioned above. Serologic results of whole blood samples obtained by venipuncture and filter paper were compared. The methods used included: indirect Immunofluorescence (IIF) to detect IgG, Carbon Immunoassay (CIA) and Hemagglutination Inhibition (HI) to detect total antibodies. The overall sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values obtained in this work are satisfactory and enabled us to say that the taking and transport of blood samples on filter papers is a useful and accurate technique for seroepidemiological studies in rabbits.