Lupus & antiphospholipid syndrome
Clinical evaluation of the novel digital liquid chip method for anti-dsDNA detection in SLE
Authors' conclusion
DLCM demonstrated substantial agreement with CLIA and held potential for SLE diagnosis and monitoring.
Study context
- Population
- Patients with SLE and with other autoimmune diseases, Peking Union Medical College Hospital698 SLE, 651 other
- Participants
- 1,349 patients
- Comparison
- Digital liquid chip method (DLCM) vs indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) vs chemiluminescent immunoassay (CLIA) for anti-dsDNA detection
- Outcome
- Sensitivity, specificity and AUC of each method and combination at manufacturer cut-offs
Methodological detailsretrospective, consecutive enrolment, single-centre
- Retrospective
- Consecutive enrolment
- Single-centre
Performance
As reported in the abstract
Diagnostic performance for SLE
| Test or model | AUC | Sensitivity | Specificity | Accuracy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IIF | — not stated in the abstract | 36.0% | 98.5% | — not stated in the abstract |
| CLIA | — not stated in the abstract | 48.1% | 96.3% | — not stated in the abstract |
| DLCM | — not stated in the abstract | 41.4% | 96.6% | — not stated in the abstract |
| IIF+CLIA | 0.75 | 54.0% | — not stated in the abstract | 74.1% |
AUC
IIF— not stated in the abstract
CLIA— not stated in the abstract
DLCM— not stated in the abstract
IIF+CLIA0.75
Sensitivity
IIF36.0%
CLIA48.1%
DLCM41.4%
IIF+CLIA54.0%
Specificity
IIF98.5%
CLIA96.3%
DLCM96.6%
IIF+CLIA— not stated in the abstract
Accuracy
IIF— not stated in the abstract
CLIA— not stated in the abstract
DLCM— not stated in the abstract
IIF+CLIA74.1%
— not stated in the abstract
- IIF vs CLIA and DLCM: P < 0.05 — IIF significantly greater
- CLIA vs IIF and DLCM: P < 0.001 — CLIA highest
Further findings
| Outcome | DLCM | P value |
|---|---|---|
| C3 level, DLCM+ vs DLCM- | 0.71 g/L | P < 0.001 |
| Musculoskeletal involvement, DLCM55.3% vs 44.7% | P < 0.01 |
- C3 level, DLCM+ vs DLCM-: DLCM- 0.90 g/L
Agreement between methods (Cohen's kappa)
- DLCM vs CLIA, substantial positive agreement
- κ=0.67
- IIF vs other methods, moderate agreement
- κ=0.52-0.55
Moderate-severe disease activity
- DLCM positive
- 65.0%
Renal involvement, diagnostic performance
- Sensitivity
- 46.9%
- Specificity
- 56.3%
- AUC
- 0.52
Original publication
Clinical evaluation of the novel digital liquid chip method for anti-dsDNA detection in SLE. Lupus Sci Med. Published 15 July 2025. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →