The Likelihood of an Indeterminate Test Result from a Whole-Blood Interferon-γ Release Assay for the Diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection in Children Correlates With Age and Immune Status

2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (8) ◽  
pp. 669-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Haustein ◽  
Deborah A. Ridout ◽  
John C. Hartley ◽  
Urvashi Thaker ◽  
Delane Shingadia ◽  
...  
PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. e0120006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dumitru Chesov ◽  
Christoph Lange ◽  
Franziska Daduna ◽  
Valeriu Crudu ◽  
Rosemarie Preyer ◽  
...  

2014 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 04-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcelo Genofre Vallada ◽  
Thelma Suely Okay ◽  
Gilda Maria B. Del Negro ◽  
Claudio Amaral Antonio ◽  
Lidia Yamamoto ◽  
...  

Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of an interferongamma release assay (QuantiFERON-TB Gold in Tube) for diagnosing Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in a young pediatric population. Methods: 195 children previously vaccinated with BCG were evaluated, being 184 healthy individuals with no clinical or epidemiological evidence of mycobacterial infection, and 11 with Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, according to clinical, radiological, and laboratory parameters. A blood sample was obtained from each child and processed according to the manufacturer's instructions. The assay performance was evaluated by a Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve. Results: In the group of 184 non-infected children, 130 (70.6%) were under the age of four years (mean age of 35 months). In this group, 177 children (96.2%) had negative test results, six (3.2%) had indeterminate results, and one (0.5%) had a positive result. In the group of 11 infected children, the mean age was 58.5 months, and two of them (18%) had negative results. The ROC curve had an area under the curve of 0.88 (95%CI 0.82-0.92; p<0.001), disclosing a predictive positive value of 81.8% for the test (95%CI 46.3-97.4). The assay sensitivity was 81.8% (95%CI 48.2-97.2) and the specificity was 98.8% (95%CI 96-99.8). Conclusions: In the present study, the QuantiFERON-TB Gold in Tube performance for diagnosing M. tuberculosis infection was appropriate in a young pediatric population.


2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 280-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfred Goodfellow ◽  
Douglas N. Keeling ◽  
Robert C. Hayes ◽  
Duncan Webster

Background: With increasing use of immunosuppressive therapy, including tumor necrosis factor a inhibitors, there is concern about infectious complications, including reactivation of latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Routine testing prior to administration of systemic immunosuppression includes the tuberculin skin test, which lacks sensitivity and specificity and may be difficult to interpret in the presence of extensive cutaneous disease. Treatment of individuals with latent tuberculosis infection is recommended when immunosuppressive medications are to be employed. Observations: We report a case in which a diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection in a patient with extensive bullous pemphigoid was clarified by the use of an interferon-γ release assay after equivocal tuberculin skin test results. Conclusion: Interferon-γ release assays are useful adjuncts to the tuberculin skin test in the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection in the setting of extensive cutaneous disease.


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