Evaluation of Fluorescent Treponemal Antibody (RFTA and FTA II) and Other Tests (RPCF and TPI) for Syphilis

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Abstract
Fluorescent treponemal antibody tests (RFTA and FTA n) using hypochlorite-treated Reiter and Nichols strain treponemes, respectively, were compared with each other and with a Reiter protein complement-fixation (RPCF) test in a study of sera previously subjected to the Treponema pallidum immobilization (TPI) test. The fluorescent antibody (FA) tests were closely comparable in sensitivity and specificity for syphilis. The RPCF test was slightly more sensitive than either FA test, but yielded somewhat more "non-specific" reactions. It appeared that either FA test might serve as well as the RPCF test as a screening procedure in differentiating persons with latent syphilis from those whose sera react "non-specifically" with cardiolipin antigens. Considerations favoring selection of an FA test are simplicity of performance and the need for fewer reagents. Moreover, the RFTA test substitutes an organism that can be cultivated simply in vitro for one requiring maintenance in infected rabbits.