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Performance of symptom-based tuberculosis screening among people living with HIV: not as great as hoped.

ABSTRACT: The objective of the present study was to determine the diagnostic performance of the symptom-based tuberculosis (TB) screening questionnaire recommended by WHO for people living with HIV (PLWH) in resource-limited settings, among adults off and on antiretroviral therapy (ART).Cross-sectional study at two HIV clinics in South Africa.A total of 825 PLWH completed the screening questionnaire and underwent investigations [chest radiography (CXR) and microbiologic testing of sputa]. A positive screen was defined as presence of cough, fever, night sweats, or weight loss. Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) was defined as sputum smear positive for acid-fast bacilli or growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.Of 737 participants with at least one diagnostic sputum specimen, PTB was diagnosed in 31 of 522 (5.9%) on ART, and 34 of 215 (15.8%) not on ART. The questionnaire missed 15 of 31 (48.4%) PTB cases on ART, and three of 34 (8.8%) not on ART. Among participants on ART, post-test probability of PTB diagnosis (95% confidence interval) was 6.8% (4.0-10.9%) if screening positive, and 5.2% (2.9-8.4%) if screening negative, whereas among participants not on ART, post-test probabilities were 20.3% (14.2-27.5%) and 4.8% (1.0-13.5%), respectively. Among participants diagnosed with PTB, those on ART were significantly less likely to screen positive (adjusted odds ratio 0.04, 95% confidence interval: 0.01-0.39). In both groups (ART and no ART), screening was more sensitive when CXR was incorporated.For case detection and exclusion of PTB, the WHO-recommended questionnaire performed adequately among PLWH not on ART, and poorly among those on ART. Further research is needed to identify feasible and effective TB screening strategies for PLWH in resource-limited settings.

SUBMITTER: Ahmad Khan F

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5116236 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Performance of symptom-based tuberculosis screening among people living with HIV: not as great as hoped.

Ahmad Khan Faiz F Verkuijl Sabine S Parrish Andrew A Chikwava Fadzai F Ntumy Raphael R El-Sadr Wafaa W Howard Andrea A AA

AIDS (London, England) 20140601 10

<h4>Objective</h4>The objective of the present study was to determine the diagnostic performance of the symptom-based tuberculosis (TB) screening questionnaire recommended by WHO for people living with HIV (PLWH) in resource-limited settings, among adults off and on antiretroviral therapy (ART).<h4>Design</h4>Cross-sectional study at two HIV clinics in South Africa.<h4>Methods</h4>A total of 825 PLWH completed the screening questionnaire and underwent investigations [chest radiography (CXR) and ...[more]

PMID: 24681417

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Symptom-based screening for tuberculosis is recommended for all people living with HIV. This recommendation results in unnecessary Xpert MTB/RIF testing in many individuals living in tuberculosis-endemic areas and thus poor implementation of intensified case finding and tuberculosis preventive therapy. Novel approaches to tuberculosis screening are needed to help achieve global targets for tuberculosis elimination. We assessed the performance of C-reactive protein (CRP) measured with a point-of-care assay as a screening tool for active pulmonary tuberculosis. METHODS:For this prospective study, we enrolled adults (aged ?18 years) living with HIV with CD4 cell count less than or equal to 350 cells per ?L who were initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART) from two HIV/AIDS clinics in Uganda. CRP concentrations were measured at study entry with a point-of-care assay using whole blood obtained by fingerprick (concentration ?10 mg/L defined as screen positive for tuberculosis). Sputum samples were collected for Xpert MTB/RIF testing and culture. We calculated the sensitivity and specificity of point-of-care CRP and WHO symptom-based screening in reference to culture results. We repeated the sensitivity analysis with Xpert MTB/RIF as the reference standard. FINDINGS:Between July 8, 2013, and Dec 15, 2015, 1237 HIV-infected adults were enrolled and underwent point-of-care CRP testing. 60 (5%) patients with incomplete or contaminated cultures were excluded from the analysis. Of the remaining 1177 patients (median CD4 count 165 cells per ?L [IQR 75-271]), 163 (14%) had culture-confirmed tuberculosis. Point-of-care CRP testing had 89% sensitivity (145 of 163, 95% CI 83-93) and 72% specificity (731 of 1014, 95% CI 69-75) for culture-confirmed tuberculosis. Compared with WHO symptom-based screening, point-of-care CRP testing had lower sensitivity (difference -7%, 95% CI -12 to -2; p=0·002) but substantially higher specificity (difference 58%, 95% CI 55 to 61; p<0·0001). When Xpert MTB/RIF results were used as the reference standard, sensitivity of point-of-care CRP and WHO symptom-based screening were similar (94% [79 of 84] vs 99% [83 of 84], respectively; difference -5%, 95% CI -12 to 2; p=0·10). INTERPRETATION:The performance characteristics of CRP support its use as a tuberculosis screening test for people living with HIV with CD4 count less than or equal to 350 cells per ?L who are initiating ART. HIV/AIDS programmes should consider point-of-care CRP-based tuberculosis screening to improve the efficiency of intensified case finding and increase uptake of tuberculosis preventive therapy. FUNDING:National Institutes of Health; President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief; University of California, San Francisco, Nina Ireland Program for Lung Health.

Project description:INTRODUCTION:Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of mortality among people living with HIV (PLHIV). An invigorated global END TB Strategy seeks to increase efforts in scaling up TB preventive therapy (TPT) as a central intervention for HIV programmes in an effort to contribute to a 90% reduction in TB incidence and 95% reduction in mortality by 2035. TPT in PLHIV should be part of a comprehensive approach to reduce TB transmission, illness and death that also includes TB active case-finding and prompt, effective and timely initiation of anti-TB therapy among PLHIV. However, the use and implementation of preventive strategies has remained deplorably inadequate and today TB prevention among PLHIV has become an urgent priority globally. DISCUSSION:We present a summary of the current and novel TPT regimens, including current evidence of use with antiretroviral regimens (ART). We review challenges and opportunities to scale-up TB prevention within HIV programmes, including the use of differentiated care approaches and demand creation for effective TB/HIV services delivery. TB preventive vaccines and diagnostics, including optimal algorithms, while important topics, are outside of the focus of this commentary. CONCLUSIONS:A number of new tools and strategies to make TPT a standard of care in HIV programmes have become available. The new TPT regimens are safe and effective and can be used with current ART, with attention being paid to potential drug-drug interactions between rifamycins and some classes of antiretrovirals. More research and development is needed to optimize TPT for small children, pregnant women and drug-resistant TB (DR-TB). Effective programmatic scale-up can be supported through context-adapted demand creation strategies and the inclusion of TPT in client-centred services, such as differentiated service delivery (DSD) models. Robust collaboration between the HIV and TB programmes represents a unique opportunity to ensure that TB, a preventable and curable condition, is no longer the number one cause of death in PLHIV.

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Performance of symptom-based tuberculosis screening among people living with HIV: not as great as hoped.

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Performance of symptom-based tuberculosis screening among people living with HIV: not as great as hoped.

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