Evaluation of dried blood spot testing using the Abbott Alinity i

•Dried blood spots (DBS) can be used for blood-borne virus testing.•DBS testing was compared on both the Abbott Architect and the Abbott Alinity i.•Good correlation between Abbott Architect and Abbott Alinity i for DBS samples.•Manufacturer’s cut-off set for plasma can be used for HIV and HBsAg.•Alteration in manufacturer’s cut-off suggested for HCV antibody and HBV core IgG. The West of Scotland Specialist Virology Centre currently uses the Abbott Architect for DBS serology. The new Abbott Alinity i will replace the Architect in our laboratory. In this study, mock and stored patient DBS samples were tested on both platforms and results compared. Mock DBS were made from whole blood where patient results were known (38 negative samples and 141 positive samples; 39 HIV Antigen/Antibody (Ag/Ab), 35 HCV IgG antibody (HCVG), 34 HBV core IgG (HBCG) and 33 HBsAg). Mock DBS were tested on both Abbott platforms. Stored patient DBS samples (132 negative and 263 positive: 9 HIVAg/Ab, 10 HBsAg, 52 HBCG and 60 HCVG) previously tested on the Architect were retested on the Alinity i. Mock DBS showed good correlation between the Architect and Alinity i for the HIV Ag/Ab,HBCG and HCVG assays. A poorer correlation occurred with HBsAg, the Alinity i reported HBsAg positives at a lower value compared to the Architect. The coefficient of variation for intra-assay variation was 1.69 % (HIVAg/Ab), 3.25 % (HCVG), 1.68 % (HBsAg) and 1.95 % (HBCG). The sensitivity and specificity was determined based on results from the mock and patient samples. At S/Co cut-off 1.0 both HIV and HBsAg had a sensitivity of 100 %. A cut-off 0.8 gave a sensitivity of 95.83 % (95 % CI 89.67%–98.85%) for HCVG and 0.3 gave a sensitivity of 98.8 % (CI 93.69%–99.97%) for HBCG. The alinity i compared well against the architect and can be used to test DBS samples.