Immunological and Molecular Detection of Rubella Virus in Iraqi Pregnant Women with Unknown Cause of Abortions

Backgrounds: Rubella (German measles) is a common mild illness signs’ by fever, mild intoxication, rash, swelling, and soreness of the lymph nodes. It affects children and teenagers worldwide and can also affect young adults. Rubella virus infects pregnant women, and can be transmitted to the fetus and causing birth defects or Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS). The study designed to scrutinize the role of the Rubella virus in spontaneous abortion by comparing Immunological and molecular tests used in diagnosing the virus in Iraqi aborted women. Methods: A total of sixty women were enrolled from two Baghdad maternity hospitals from December 2023 to February 2024. Thirty serum samples were gathered from spontaneously miscarriage women, and thirty from healthy as a control group. Serological tests, Chemi-Luminescence (TORCH) and Enzyme Immunoassay were performed for diagnosis of Rubella virus infection followed by molecular detection by Reverse Transcriptase-PCR. Results: Revealed that out of 30 specimens, 26 tested positive for rubella virus. Both Enzyme Immunoassay and Chemi-Luminescence assay detected anti-Rubella virus IgG, but the Immunoassay test showed superiority over the Chemi-Luminescence assay by 54%, and IgM anti-Rubella virus was slightly high by only 3%. Conclusions: Molecular detection was more reliable diagnostic method of rubella virus.