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Haemagglutination Inhibition HI

Certain viruses, for example,. influenza and mumps viruses, have the ability to aggltinate red blood cells. Inhibition of haemagglutination by antibody in the patient's serum is a widely used diagnostic procedure. To examine the serum of a patient suspected of having influenza, one simply mixes the patient's serum with known influenza virus and red cells.

If antibody is present, it binds to the virus and blocks its ability to haemagglutinate. If, on the other hand) no antibody is present, haemagglutination will occur.