The physician orders an antistreptolysin O (ASO) titer test to check for rheumatic fever.A patient serum sample is exposed to known suspensions of streptolysin and then allowed to incubate with RBCs? If the patient does have rheumatic fever, what will happen?
A)Not enough information is provided to speculate.
B)The red blood cells will lyse.
C)The red blood cells will agglutinate only.
D)The red blood cells will not lyse.
E)The red blood cells will fluoresce.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

If the patient has rheumatic fever, then the ASO titer test will show an elevated level of antibodies against streptolysin. When the patient serum sample is exposed to known suspensions of streptolysin and then allowed to incubate with RBCs, the antibodies present in the serum will neutralize the streptolysin and prevent it from lysing the RBCs. Therefore, the RBCs will not lyse in the presence of the patient serum sample, indicating the presence of ASO antibodies and a positive test result for rheumatic fever.

The Physician Orders an Antistreptolysin O (ASO) Titer Test to Check