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Waaler-Rose

The Waaler-Rose test is an older diagnostic blood test used to detect the presence of rheumatoid factor (RF), an antibody that is often found in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The test is named after two Norwegian doctors, Jan Waaler and Niels Christian Rose, who developed it in the 1940s. The Waaler-Rose test involves mixing a person's serum (the liquid part of the blood) with sheep red blood cells that have been coated with rabbit anti-sheep red blood cell antibodies. If RF is present in the person's serum, it will react with the sheep red blood cells, causing them to clump together (agglutination). The degree of agglutination is measured and scored, with a higher score indicating a higher level of RF. The Waaler-Rose test has been largely replaced by other tests for RF, such as the latex agglutination test and the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). These newer tests are more sensitive and specific than the Waaler-Rose test, and can detect lower levels of RF. While the Waaler-Rose test is no longer commonly used, it played an important role in the early diagnosis and understanding of RA, and helped pave the way for the development of more accurate and reliable tests for RF.

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