Comparison of nine commercially available assays for quantification of antibody response to hepatitis B virus surface antigen

摘要

The antibody response to hepatitis B virus surface antigen (anti-HBs) is an important serological marker for vaccine-induced immunity to HBV. An adequate vaccine response is defined as an anti-HBs level of >100 IU/L 4-8 weeks after the last of three or four vaccine applications. It is widely accepted that a sustained level of at least 10 IU/'L is protective against HBV infection. All known recommendations imply that the measurement of anti-HBs levels by different assays is accurate and consistent, yielding comparable quantitative results in various laboratories and countries. Actually, the analysis of routine clinical samples by means of different assays reveals significant discrepancies for a number of sera. The authors determined whether the quantification of anti-HBs levels is comparable and accurate within acceptable limits and they intended to identify factors contributing to the variability of test results. In serum specimens from 200 patients and health care professionals anti-HBs was measured using nine different commercially available assays.