Sensitivities of radioimmunoassay and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for detection of hepatitis B surface antigen.
Radioimmunoassay (RIA) using Austria II (Abbott) was found to be more sensitive for the detection of HBsAg than the Hepanostika Micro-Elisa system (Organon Teknika), by a factor of 5- to 20-fold for subtype 'ad' (with one exception), and 2- to 5-fold for subtype 'ay'. The sensitivities of RIA and the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Elisa) have also been evaluated in the screening of 178 selected serum samples contributed by 7 different laboratories. Of these, 149 were found to be positive for HBsAg by RIA, 142 were positive by Elisa and 36 were positive by CEP.