Comparing sensitivity of Hymenoptera allergen components on different diagnostic assay systems: Comparing apples and oranges?

In a recent letter to the editor published in the Journal, Schrautzer et al1 reported the comparison of 2 different diagnostic assays, namely ImmunoCAP (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, Mass) and Immulite (Siemens, Tarrytown, NY), for the detection of specific IgE (sIgE) responses to allergen components in a population of patients with Hymenoptera venom allergy. The study reports a higher rate of positive test results (≥0.35 kUA/L) on the Immulite compared with the ImmunoCAP system for sIgE to rApi m 1 in patients with bee venom allergy and for sIgE to rVes v 5 in patients with vespid venom allergy and concludes that the Immulite system displays a higher sensitivity for the detection of sIgE to these Hymenoptera venom allergens.

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