BACKGROUND Tuberculosis (TB) is the second leading cause of human death and TB is one of the major public health problems in Bangladesh. The aim of the present study was to assess the Knowledge about TB among non-medical university students in Bangladesh. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was performed on 839 non-medical university students. Data were collected from University of Rajshahi from...

Xpert MTB/RIF is a rapid test to diagnose tuberculosis (TB) and rifampicin-resistant TB. Cost and affordability will influence its uptake. We assessed the cost, globally and in 36 high-burden countries, of two strategies for diagnosing TB and multidrug-resistant (MDR)-TB: Xpert with follow-on diagnostics, and conventional diagnostics. Costs were compared with funding available for TB care and c...

OBJECTIVE Interferon-γ and IP-10 release assays are diagnostic tests for tuberculosis infection. We have compared the accuracy of IP-10 and QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-tube [QFT-IT] in Tanzanian children suspected of having active tuberculosis (TB). METHODS Hospitalized Tanzanian children with symptoms of TB were tested with the QFT-IT and IP-10 tests and retrospectively classified into diagnostic...

BACKGROUND AND SETTING Thailand is one of the highest tuberculosis (TB)-burdened countries. Chiang Rai, the northernmost province of Thailand has high tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence and the laboratory workload for TB culture and drug susceptibility testing is increasing. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the simply modified microscopic-observation drug-susceptibility assa...

BACKGROUND The use of the point-of-care lateral flow lipoarabinomannan (LF-LAM) test may expedite tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in HIV-positive patients. However, the test's clinical utility is poorly defined outside sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS The study enrolled consecutive HIV-positive adults at a tertiary referral hospital in Yangon, Myanmar. On enrolment, patients had a LF-LAM test performe...

BACKGROUND A recently published Ugandan study on tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in HIV-positive patients with presumptive smear-negative TB, which showed that out of 90 patients who started TB treatment, 20% (18/90) had a positive Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert) test, 24% (22/90) had a negative Xpert test, and 56% (50/90) were started without Xpert testing. Although Xpert testing was available, clinicians d...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of a whole blood interferon-γ release assay, the QuantiFERON®-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT) test, in the diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection, and to assess its monitoring role during antitubercular treatment. In total, 20 patients received the QFT test, along with other commonly-used tests, prior to, and follo...

BACKGROUND Rapid diagnostic tests are urgently needed to mitigate HIV-associated tuberculosis (TB) mortality. We evaluated diagnostic accuracy of the rapid urine lipoarabinomannan (LAM) test for pulmonary TB and assessed the effect of a two-sample strategy. METHODS HIV-infected adults eligible for antiretroviral therapy were prospectively enrolled from Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Ghana and ...

BACKGROUND Control of the global Tuberculosis (TB) burden is hindered by the lack of a simple and effective diagnostic test that can be utilized in resource-limited settings. METHODS We evaluated the performance of Truenat MTB™, a chip-based nucleic acid amplification test in the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) in clinical sputum specimens from 226 patients with suspected pulmon...