Evaluation of rapid immunochromatographic assay kit for HBsAg-screening using whole blood

A rapid immunochromatographic assay kit using whole blood to screen hepatitis B surface antigen was developed and evaluated by using sera from 240 patients. The reference diagnosis was based on the results obtained with GENEDIA Anti-HBs Rapid kit which is very similar to the above kit except for the use of serum. The test demonstrated a good correlation with the reference immunochromatographic assay kit, that is, the sensitivity and the specificity of the kit was 100%, respectively. The rapid test kit using whole blood should be more convenient and useful for the diagnosis of hepatitis B virus because the kit does not need machines and time to prepare serum. In addition, this kit is safe from inadvertent infection during sample treatment because the blood is sterilized with hydrogen peroxide, eliminates the procedure required to prepare serum and reduces the possibility of exposure to infectious agents.