IBRAHIM S, ABDALLAH A, SALEH E, OSTERHAUS A, DE SWART R. Measles virus-specific antibody levels in Sudanese infants: a prospective study using filter-paper blood samples.
Epidemiol Infect 2006;
134:79-85. [PMID:
16409653 PMCID:
PMC2870356 DOI:
10.1017/s0950268805004620]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/30/2005] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
We conducted a prospective birth cohort study in rural Sudan to assess measles virus (MV)-specific antibody levels at different time points in infancy. Dried blood spots were collected on filter paper at birth (cord blood) and at ages 6, 12 and 24 months (heel-prick). Maternally derived MV-specific antibody levels were high in cord blood samples, but at the age of 6 months had dropped below cut-off values in half of the infants. By extrapolation it was concluded that the current Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI) target age for measles vaccination of 9 months was an appropriate choice for this area. At the age of 24 months acquired MV-specific antibodies were detected in 65-85% of the cohort, which corresponded well with the 79% of infants reported to be vaccinated by this age. This study demonstrates the usefulness of filter paper blood samples for seroepidemiological studies in developing countries.
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