Abstract

GOVENDER, Shanthie et al. Herpes simplex virus-2 infections in pregnant women from South Africa: Evaluation of the ImmunoFLOW rapid test. Afr. J. Lab. Med. [online]. 2020, vol.9, n.1, pp.1-5. ISSN 2225-2010.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ajlm.v9i1.854.

The diagnostic performance of ImmunoFLOW, a rapid test for detecting herpes simplex virus type-2 (HSV-2) infections, was investigated in 248 antenatal women. Approximately one hundred and seventy-seven (71%) of the enrolled women were infected with HSV-2. Sero-positivity was associated with older age ([≥ 30 years] 104/177, 58%), having a secondary level of education but not tertiary level of education (125/177, 70.6%), and being unmarried (150/177, 84.7%). The sensitivity of the ImmunoFLOW test in relation to the HerpeSelect HSV-2 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was 89.7% and specificity was 96.2%. The ImmunoFLOW therefore can serve as a valuable test in screening for HSV-2 infections in pregnant women.

Keywords : HSV-2 infection; pregnant women; rapid test; South Africa.

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