TABLE 4.
Immunoassay results classified by the relative number of parasites present
| Relative parasite no.a | No. of positive results obtained by:
|
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MERIFLUOR DFA test | Pro- SpecT EIA | Immuno- Card STAT! | Modified acid-fast stained smear | |
| Giardia | ||||
| Rare | 10 | 8 | 4 | NA |
| Few | 6 | 5 | 6 | NA |
| Moderate | 4 | 4 | 4 | NA |
| Many | 12 | 12 | 12 | NA |
| Total | 32 | 29 | 26 | |
| Cryptosporidium | ||||
| Rare | 10 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Few | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Moderate | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Many | 22 | 22 | 22 | 15 |
| Total | 37 | 26 | 25 | 29 |
a
Organisms detected by the DFA test were counted and classified as rare (≤ 25), few (26 to 175), moderate (176 to 275), and many (≥ 275).