Diagnosis of Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary disease (MAC-PD) can be difficult. A previous study from Japan reported the usefulness of a serodiagnostic test for MAC-PD. The objective of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the test in similar patients in the USA. 100 patients with known or suspected MAC-PD and 52 healthy volunteers were enrolled into the study at National Jewish Health, Denver, CO, USA. Serum glycopeptidolipid core immunoglobulin A antibody levels were measured with an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) kit and routine clinical evaluations were performed.The patients were divided into two groups based on clinical evaluation: 87 patients with MAC-PD that met American Thoracic Society criteria, and 13 who did not meet the criteria. The sensitivity and specificity (cut-off point 0.3 U?mL -1 ) of the serodiagnostic test for diagnosing MAC-PD were 70.1% and 93.9%, respectively. Among the 44 patients in the MAC-PD group with two or more positive sputum cultures within the previous 6 months, sensitivity was 81.8%.The EIA kit demonstrated good sensitivity and specificity for the identification of MAC-PD, particularly in patients with two or more positive cultures, and may be useful for rapid MAC-PD diagnosis. @ERSpublications Serodiagnostic test for Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary disease demonstrated good sensitivity and specificity

The addition of raltegravir to a virologically suppressive HAART regimen in patients with poor immunological responses resulted in the reduction of several pro-inflammatory biomarkers; increases were seen in RANTES levels and CD4(+)/CD8(+) T-cell ratios. The clinical relevance of these observations is beyond the scope of this study.

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