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Article

Usefulness of Dried Blood Spot Samples for Syphilis Screening

by
Victoria González Soler
1,2,3,4,
Gema Fernández-Rivas
2,4,5,*,
Héctor Martínez Riveros
1,4,
Pablo Pillado Alonso
2,
Yesika Díaz Rodríguez
1,4,
Marcos Montoro Fernández
1,4,
Miquel Saña Miralles
1,4,
Pere Joan Cardona Iglesias
2,4,5,6,
Jordi Casabona Barbarà
1,3,4,7 and
C. Agusti
1,3,4
1
Centre for Epidemiological Studies on Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV/AIDS of Catalonia (CEEISCAT), Public Health Agency of Catalonia (ASPCAT), 08916 Badalona, Barcelona, Spain
2
Microbiology Department, Laboratori Clinic Metropolitana Nord (LCMN), Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute and Hospital (IGTP), 08916 Badalona, Barcelona, Spain
3
Biomedical Research Center Network for Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
4
Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), Campus Can Ruti, 08916 Badalona, Barcelona, Spain
5
Genetics and Microbiology Department, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
6
Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), 28029 Madrid, Spain
7
Department of Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology and Preventive Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Barcelona, Spain
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
LabMed 2025, 2(4), 22; https://doi.org/10.3390/labmed2040022
Submission received: 17 September 2025 / Revised: 8 October 2025 / Accepted: 29 October 2025 / Published: 4 November 2025
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Abstract

Dried blood spots (DBSs) are a practical tool for diagnosing infectious diseases, especially in remote or resource-limited settings. This study assessed the efficacy of DBS-based serological assays for syphilis screening. EDTA blood samples from 171 syphilis-seropositive and 122 seronegative individuals were used to prepare DBSs by spotting whole blood onto filter paper. After drying, 12 mm disks were punched, incubated overnight in buffered solution, and centrifuged. Syphilis serological screening was conducted using the Liaison® Treponema Screen assay, Macro-Vue™ Reagin Plasma Rapid (RPR) card test, and Dual Path Platform (DPP) Syphilis Screen and Confirm test. The Liaison® assay demonstrated 100% sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) with an optimized cut-off. The nontreponemal RPR test showed very low sensitivity (2.9%) on DBS but perfect specificity (100%). The DPP test for treponemal antibodies achieved high sensitivity (92.1%) and specificity (98.2%) with microreader adjustment. Visual reading of the DPP test had variable accuracy, with sensitivity reaching 100% but lower specificity (42.1%). Nontreponemal antibody detection by DPP showed moderate sensitivity and specificity. Although nontreponemal testing requires refinement, DBS testing combined with point-of-care tests like DPP holds promise for expanding syphilis screening accessibility and decentralization globally, particularly in resource-constrained environments.
Keywords: syphilis; dried blood spot; serology; POC test syphilis; dried blood spot; serology; POC test

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MDPI and ACS Style

González Soler, V.; Fernández-Rivas, G.; Martínez Riveros, H.; Alonso, P.P.; Díaz Rodríguez, Y.; Montoro Fernández, M.; Miralles, M.S.; Cardona Iglesias, P.J.; Casabona Barbarà, J.; Agusti, C. Usefulness of Dried Blood Spot Samples for Syphilis Screening. LabMed 2025, 2, 22. https://doi.org/10.3390/labmed2040022

AMA Style

González Soler V, Fernández-Rivas G, Martínez Riveros H, Alonso PP, Díaz Rodríguez Y, Montoro Fernández M, Miralles MS, Cardona Iglesias PJ, Casabona Barbarà J, Agusti C. Usefulness of Dried Blood Spot Samples for Syphilis Screening. LabMed. 2025; 2(4):22. https://doi.org/10.3390/labmed2040022

Chicago/Turabian Style

González Soler, Victoria, Gema Fernández-Rivas, Héctor Martínez Riveros, Pablo Pillado Alonso, Yesika Díaz Rodríguez, Marcos Montoro Fernández, Miquel Saña Miralles, Pere Joan Cardona Iglesias, Jordi Casabona Barbarà, and C. Agusti. 2025. "Usefulness of Dried Blood Spot Samples for Syphilis Screening" LabMed 2, no. 4: 22. https://doi.org/10.3390/labmed2040022

APA Style

González Soler, V., Fernández-Rivas, G., Martínez Riveros, H., Alonso, P. P., Díaz Rodríguez, Y., Montoro Fernández, M., Miralles, M. S., Cardona Iglesias, P. J., Casabona Barbarà, J., & Agusti, C. (2025). Usefulness of Dried Blood Spot Samples for Syphilis Screening. LabMed, 2(4), 22. https://doi.org/10.3390/labmed2040022

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