Comparison of the fluorescent treponemal antibody test with other tests for syphilis on cerebrospinal fluids.

Abstract

Tests for syphilis on cerebrospinal fluids were evaluated in the Washington, D.C., Serology Conference of 1941 (J. vener. Dis. Inform., 1942), but spinal fluids were omitted from the later Serology Evaluation and Research Assembly Study in 1956-57 (S.E.R.A., 1959). Since this earlier evaluation, several treponemal antigen tests have been described. The Treponema pallidum immobilization (TPI), fluorescent treponemal antibody (FTA), and Kolmer complement-fixation tests using Reiter protein antigen (KRP) are three tests designed to detect antibodies differing from those that caused reactivity in the non-treponemal antigen tests. The FTA test has been used for testing sera, but has not properly been evaluated as a spinal fluid test. This study was conducted to evaluate the FTA test in comparison with other treponemal tests for syphilis on spinal fluids. The VDRL spinal fluid test was included in this study to offer a comparison of the non-treponemal with the treponemal test results.