Abstract
Background: Influenza type A (H1N1) causes an epidemic disease, resulting in thousands of deaths throughout the world.
Objectives: Our aim was comparing the efficacy of two different methods in isolating the Influenza (H1N1) virus including cell culture and
real-Time PCR in Tabriz and suburbs.
Patients and Methods: Of throat swab samples, 220 were collected in viral transport medium (VTM) from patients with a suspected
influenza virus infection referred to hospitals and clinics of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. All the samples were examined through
virus culturing in Madin-Darby canine kidney epithelial cells (MDCK line) and also real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The
collected data were analyzed by SPSS version 16.
Results: RT-PCR detected 41 cases of influenza A (H1N1), compared with the virus isolation methods that detected 18 cases.
Conclusions: RT-PCR provided a sensitive and specific route compared with virus isolation. In addition, urgent planning for the
vaccination program of influenza A is suggested, which can definitely prevent the spread of virus in this part of Iran.