[Detection of Legionella pneumophila antibodies in the blood serum of pneumonia patients by an immunoenzyme method].

The conditions of making the enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for the detection of antibodies to L. pneumophila have been optimized. The use of L. pneumophila purified serotypic antigen at a concentration of 0.25 micrograms/ml for the sensitization of polystyrene plates has been shown to increase the sensitivity and specificity of the assay. 220 patients with severe pneumonia have been examined. As revealed in this investigation, antibodies to L. pneumophila can be detected in 12.2% of cases. A high degree of correlation (94.4%) between the results of EIA and the indirect immunofluorescence test has been shown.