The Journal of infection
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The Journal of infection · Apr 2015
Multicenter StudyXpert MTB/RIF assay for diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis in children: a prospective, multi-centre evaluation.
Following endorsement by the World Health Organisation, the Xpert MTB/RIF assay has been widely incorporated into algorithms for the diagnosis of adult tuberculosis (TB). However, data on its performance in children remain scarce. This prospective, multi-centre study evaluated the performance of Xpert MTB/RIF to diagnose pulmonary tuberculosis in children. ⋯ Xpert MTB/RIF provided timely results with moderate sensitivity and excellent specificity compared to culture. Low yields in children with highly probable and probable TB remain problematic.
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The Journal of infection · Apr 2015
IP-10 differentiates between active and latent tuberculosis irrespective of HIV status and declines during therapy.
Biomarkers for diagnosis and therapy efficacy in tuberculosis (TB) are requested. We have studied biomarkers that may differentiate between active and latent TB infection (LTBI), the influence of HIV infection and changes during anti-TB chemotherapy. ⋯ IP-10 distinguished with high accuracy active TB from LTBI irrespective of HIV infection and declined during anti-TB chemotherapy. Plasma IP-10 may serve as a diagnostic biomarker to differentiate between the stages of TB infection and for monitoring therapy efficacy.
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The Journal of infection · Apr 2015
Adjunctive biomarkers for improving diagnosis of tuberculosis and monitoring therapeutic effects.
To identify host biomarkers associated with latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), active tuberculosis (TB), and nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) diseases to improve diagnosis and effective anti-TB treatment. ⋯ Serum IL-2, IL-9, IL-13, IL-17, TNF-α, sCD40L and VEGF-A levels may be adjunctive biomarkers for differential diagnosis of active TB, LTBI, and NTM disease. Assessment of serum sCD40L and M. tb antigen-specific IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-2 levels could help predict successful anti-TB treatment in conjunction with M. tb clearance.