The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
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Int. J. Tuberc. Lung Dis. · Oct 2012
Comparative StudyCombined use of a TST and the T-SPOT®.TB assay for latent tuberculosis infection diagnosis before anti-TNF-α treatment.
Diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) before anti-tumour-necrosis factor (anti-TNF) treatment is important. However, the tuberculin skin test (TST) has limitations, and the role of interferon-gamma release assays has not yet been determined. ⋯ In a TB-prevalent country, TST-defined LTBI diagnosis and treatment seem to be limited in preventing the development of TB before anti-TNF treatment. Further studies for T-SPOT alone or the combined use of TST and T-SPOT (either test positive strategy) for detecting LTBI are necessary.
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Int. J. Tuberc. Lung Dis. · Oct 2012
Comparative StudyInfluence of previous tuberculosis treatment history on acid-fast bacilli smear and culture conversion.
A teaching hospital in the Republic of Korea, 2003-2009. ⋯ Patients with a history of previous anti-tuberculosis treatment are more likely to have positive sputum AFB smear at 2 weeks of treatment. However, sputum culture conversion is not affected by previous treatment history.
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Int. J. Tuberc. Lung Dis. · Oct 2012
Comparative StudyPublic opinion on smoke-free policies among Egyptians.
A smoke-free law was passed in Egypt in 2007. In 2010 a bylaw was issued, leading to a drive by the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) to launch a smoke-free initiative in Alexandria, the second largest city. ⋯ The results of the poll clearly support results from different countries worldwide that smoke-free policies are popular and supported by the public.
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Int. J. Tuberc. Lung Dis. · Sep 2012
(18)F-FDG PET/CT in tuberculosis: an early non-invasive marker of therapeutic response.
To evaluate the potential of (18)F-fluoro-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography ((18)F-FDG PET/CT) for early therapeutic intervention in patients with probable or confirmed tuberculosis (TB). ⋯ (18)F-FDG PET/CT allows an easy evaluation of early therapeutic response in patients with TB, particularly extra-pulmonary TB.
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Int. J. Tuberc. Lung Dis. · Sep 2012
Predictors of recurrence of multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis.
To assess the treatment outcome of the first Green Light Committee (GLC) approved countrywide management of multidrug-resistant (MDR-) and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) in Estonia and to evaluate risk factors contributing to TB recurrence over 8 years of follow-up. ⋯ The internationally recommended Category IV treatment regimens are sufficiently effective to cure 75% of adherent MDR- and XDR-TB patients. A history of previous treatment, resistance to all injectable agents and resistance to a greater number of drugs increase the recurrence of MDR- and XDR-TB.