A CRITICAL STUDY OF IMMUNOLOGICAL METHODS FOR PREGNANCY DIAGNOSIS.

Immunological methods of pregnancy diagnosis using both tanned red cell and latex particles are compared in a series of women (up to the fourteenth week of gestation) and also in negative controls. The tanned red cell test showed slightly more accurate and sensitive results throughout the trial. In 31 samples also submitted for the Hogben test the immunological test showed marginal superiority. It is concluded that immunological methods are reliable for the diagnosis of pregnancy at least between the fifth and the fourteenth weeks of gestation.