ABSTRACT
Immunological diagnosis of human nematodiasis provides an alternative to direct and often invasive methods for the demonstration of infection. It also serves as confirmation of other clinical and laboratory findings. Various serology tests have been employed for the immunodiagnosis of trichinellosis including indirect immunofluorescence assay, agglutination or flocculation assays including passive hemagglutination, latex agglutination and bentonite flocculation, and enzyme immunoassay. The number of nematodes transmissible to humans from fish and invertebrates are greater in number, although these infections in humans are less common and not as cosmopolitan as trichinellosis. Trichinellosis is acquired by ingesting raw or undercooked meat. A number of comparisons have been made of test formats for the diagnosis of human trichinellosis, and these have been recently reviewed. Human infection with Gnathostoma spinigerum and related species is caused by ingestion of intermediate hosts. Human infection with Angiostrongylus cantonensis results from the ingestion of molluscan intermediate hosts or contaminated vegetation.
