Patent ID: 6939681

Claim:
A method of evaluating and/or predicting the effect of a Specific Allergy Vaccination treatment comprising the steps of: (h′) determining the content of an antibody in a liquid sample using the following assay; (a′) providing a mixture of a liquid phase and a three-component solid phase complex composed of (i) the antibody of the sample, (ii) a reactant antibody directed against the sample antibody, the reactant antibody being bound to a solid particle, and (iii) a ligand in the form of an antigen, an antibody or a hapten, where component (i) binds to components (ii) and (iii), (b′) separating the three-component solid phase complex from the liquid phase, (c′) washing the separated three-component solid phase complex to remove non-complex bound compounds, (d′) adding to the three-component solid phase complex a solution of (iv) a label compound to form a four-component complex, where component (iv) binds to component (i), (ii) or (iii), (e′) separating the four-component solid phase complex from the solution, (f′) washing the separated four-component solid phase complex to remove non-complex bound label compound (iv), (g′) performing a detection and/or measurement of the washed labeled four-component complex, (i′) determining the content of the said antibody using the following assay; (ia′) providing a mixture of a liquid phase and a four-component solid phase complex composed of (i) the antibody of the sample, (ii) a reactant antibody directed against the sample antibody, the reactant antibody being bound to a solid particle, (iii) a ligand in the form of an antigen, an antibody or a hapten, and (iv) a label compound, to form a four-component solid phase complex, where component (i) binds to components (ii) and (iii), and where component (iv) binds to component (i), (ii) or (iii), (ib′) separating the four-component solid phase complex from the liquid phase, (ic′) washing the separated four-component solid phase to remove non-complex bound compounds, and (id′) performing a detection and/or measurement of the washed labeled four-component complex. (j′) comparing the detection and/or measurements obtained in step (h′) and step (i′) and using the comparison to evaluate and/or predict the effect of the Specific Allergy Vaccination treatment, wherein an effect is obtained if the detection and/or measurement in step (i′) is less than the detection and/or measurement in step (h′).