Front-loaded smear microscopy for the diagnosis of pulmonary TB in Tripoli, Libya

Front-loaded smear microscopy for the diagnosis of pulmonary TB in Tripoli, Libya

Background Diagnosis of pulmonary TB by conventional smear microscopy requires patient attendance on 2 consecutive days. We investigated whether collecting sputum on-the-spot for smear microscopy on the day the patient presented was as sensitive and specific for diagnosis as the conventional spot-mo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Vol. 107; no. 2; pp. 137 - 139
Main Authors: Gammo, Mohamed, Lamaric, Widad, Hadida, Mukhtar, Abuazza, Aida, Askar, Nabil A., Yassin, Mohammed A., Cuevas, Luis E.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Oxford Oxford University Press 01-02-2013
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Bacterial diseases
Bacterial diseases of the respiratory system
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
General aspects
Human bacterial diseases
Humans
Infectious diseases
Libya
Male
Medical sciences
Microscopy
Middle Aged
Mycobacterium tuberculosis - isolation & purification
Sensitivity and Specificity
Specimen Handling - methods
Sputum - microbiology
Tuberculosis and atypical mycobacterial infections
Tuberculosis, Pulmonary - diagnosis
Young Adult
Libya
Africa
Adults
Tuberculosis
Diagnosis
Smear microscopy
Same-day
Human
Lung disease
Respiratory disease
Pulmonary tuberculosis
Mycobacterial infection
Infection
Microscopy
Bacteriosis
Smear
Adult
Tropical medicine
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Summary:Background Diagnosis of pulmonary TB by conventional smear microscopy requires patient attendance on 2 consecutive days. We investigated whether collecting sputum on-the-spot for smear microscopy on the day the patient presented was as sensitive and specific for diagnosis as the conventional spot-morning-spot scheme. Method We enrolled 412 adults who presented between January 2009 and October 2010 at the National Centre for TB Control in Tripoli, Libya, with cough of >2 weeks' duration, into a cross-sectional survey collecting four sputum specimens: on-the-spot and Xspot on Day 1; morning and on-the-spot on Day 2. Results 97 (24%) of 401 culture results were culture positive. Spot-Xspot and spot-morning smear microscopy had, respectively, 65% and 66% sensitivity and 97% and 96% specificity (p > 0.5). Spot-Xspot-morning and Spot-morning-spot smear-microscopy had, respectively, 67% and 66% sensitivity and 96% and 96% specificity (p > 0.5). Conclusion For the diagnosis of pulmonary TB, the sensitivity and specificity of front-loaded (same-day) smear microscopy is similar to that of the standard smear microscopy scheme.
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ISSN:0035-9203
1878-3503
DOI:10.1093/trstmh/trs023