Questionable role of interferon-γ assays for smear-negative pulmonary TB in immunocompromised patients

Background: Pulmonary Tuberculosis is one of the common infections in the world, especially in developing countries like India and is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Therefore, early diagnosis and microbiological confirmation of pulmonary TB is important. This study was done to assess the role of induced sputum with hypertonic saline in suspected pulmonary TB patients who produce no or inadequate sputum or who are sputum for AFB smear negative.Methods: 100 patients with clinical and radiological evidence of pulmonary TB with no or inadequate sputum or who are smear negative with spontaneous sputum were included in the study. Sputum was induced with 5ml of 3% hypertonic saline delivered through nebulizer and then was sent for Ziehl Neelsen staining examination.Results: 96 patients could produce adequate sputum after sputum induction. In 47 patients, sputum for AFB smear was found positive after induction.Conclusions: Sputum induction is a safe, cheap and non-invasive procedure and offers an alternative or additional approach in the diagnosis of sputum smear-negative suspected pulmonary tuberculosis patients and would enhance sensitivity for the diagnosis of tuberculosis.

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Assessment of the role of high resolution computed tomography in the diagnosis of suspected sputum smear negative active pulmonary TB

Egyptian Journal of Chest Diseases and Tuberculosis ◽

10.1016/j.ejcdt.2013.05.006 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 62 (2) ◽

pp. 263-268 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

H. Shaarrawy ◽

M. Zeidan ◽

A. Nasr ◽

M. Nouh

Keyword(s):

Computed Tomography ◽

High Resolution ◽

Sputum Smear ◽

High Resolution Computed Tomography ◽

Pulmonary Tb ◽

Smear Negative

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The Role of Interleukine-10 and Interferon-γ as Potential Markers of the Evolution of African Swine Fever Virus Infection in Wild Boar

Pathogens ◽

10.3390/pathogens10060757 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 757

Author(s):

Sandra Barroso-Arévalo ◽

Jose A. Barasona ◽

Estefanía Cadenas-Fernández ◽

José M. Sánchez-Vizcaíno

Keyword(s):

Wild Boar ◽

Vaccine Candidate ◽

African Swine Fever Virus ◽

African Swine Fever ◽

Interferon Γ ◽

Fever Virus ◽

Control Group ◽

Challenge Virus ◽

Ifn Γ

African swine fever virus (ASFv) is one of the most challenging pathogens to affect both domestic and wild pigs. The disease has now spread to Europe and Asia, causing great damage to the pig industry. Although no commercial vaccine with which to control the disease is, as yet, available, some potential vaccine candidates have shown good results in terms of protection. However, little is known about the host immune mechanisms underlying that protection, especially in wild boar, which is the main reservoir of the disease in Europe. Here, we study the role played by two cytokines (IL-10 and IFN-γ) in wild boar orally inoculated with the attenuated vaccine candidate Lv17/WB/Rie1 and challenged with a virulent ASFv genotype II isolate. A group of naïve wild boar challenged with the latter isolate was also established as a control group. Our results showed that both cytokines play a key role in protecting the host against the challenge virus. While high levels of IL-10 in serum may trigger an immune system malfunctioning in challenged animals, the provision of stable levels of this cytokine over time may help to control the disease. This, together with high and timely induction of IFN-γ by the vaccine candidate, could help protect animals from fatal outcomes. Further studies should be conducted in order to support these preliminary results and confirm the role of these two cytokines as potential markers of the evolution of ASFV infection.

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Role of fibreoptic bronchoscopy in sputum smear negative pulmonary tuberculosis

Tubercle and Lung Disease ◽

10.1016/0962-8479(94)90786-2 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 75 ◽

pp. 29

Author(s):

A. McDaniel ◽

N. Schoenfeld ◽

W. Frank ◽

A. Grassot ◽

H. Mauch ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pulmonary Tuberculosis ◽

Fibreoptic Bronchoscopy ◽

Sputum Smear ◽

Smear Negative

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Seasonality in extra-pulmonary tuberculosis notifications in Germany 2004-2014- a time series analysis

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-021-10655-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Tanja Charles ◽

Matthias Eckardt ◽

Basel Karo ◽

Walter Haas ◽

Stefan Kröger

Keyword(s):

Time Series ◽

Time Series Analysis ◽

Disease Onset ◽

Age Groups ◽

Age Group ◽

Pulmonary Tb ◽

Series Analysis ◽

Disease Site ◽

Extra Pulmonary

Abstract Background Seasonality in tuberculosis (TB) has been found in different parts of the world, showing a peak in spring/summer and a trough in autumn/winter. The evidence is less clear which factors drive seasonality. It was our aim to identify and evaluate seasonality in the notifications of TB in Germany, additionally investigating the possible variance of seasonality by disease site, sex and age group. Methods We conducted an integer-valued time series analysis using national surveillance data. We analysed the reported monthly numbers of started treatments between 2004 and 2014 for all notified TB cases and stratified by disease site, sex and age group. Results We detected seasonality in the extra-pulmonary TB cases (N = 11,219), with peaks in late spring/summer and troughs in fall/winter. For all TB notifications together (N = 51,090) and for pulmonary TB only (N = 39,714) we did not find a distinct seasonality. Additional stratified analyses did not reveal any clear differences between age groups, the sexes, or between active and passive case finding. Conclusion We found seasonality in extra-pulmonary TB only, indicating that seasonality of disease onset might be specific to the disease site. This could point towards differences in disease progression between the different clinical disease manifestations. Sex appears not to be an important driver of seasonality, whereas the role of age remains unclear as this could not be sufficiently investigated.

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