A USEFUL METHOD FOR DETERMINING CLASS-SPECIFIC RHEUMATOID FACTORS WITH COMPUTERIZED ANALYSES OF DATA

A simple and sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed to determine rheumatoid factors (RFs) of IgG, IgA and IgM class. Standardisation was performed with a standard reference serum for IgM-RF, calibrated according to the WHO preparation, and with the serum of a patient containing high levels of IgA- and IgG-RF. The sigmoidal shaped calibration curve was fitted with a computerized four parameter logistic model with simplified mathematical computations. This method provided to be more accurate for measuring RF levels, as judged by the smaller residuals, than logit or log-linear transformations. The considerable reduction in processing time, which is obtained by the computerized analysis of data, makes this method of class-specific RF determination suitable for routine analysis.