Clinically significant autoimmune hemolytic anemia with a negative direct antiglobulin test by routine tube test and positive by column agglutination method

In two to five percent of cases of autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA), the patient’s RBCs are negative in the direct antiglobulin test (DAT). We describe a patient with AIHA with a negative DAT when tested by the traditional tube test but with a strongly positive one when tested by column agglutination. When the DAT was repeated by tube test using 4°C saline washes, it became positive. This phenomenon has been observed when low-affinity antibodies are involved in AIHA. The patient’s history and serologic findings are detailed in this report. Immunohematology 2002;18:109–113.