title: [Early diagnosis of female genital tuberculosis by phage amplified biological assay].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To establish an early diagnostic method for detecting female genital tuberculosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighty-six women with genital tuberculosis during January 2005-September 2007 were examined by phage amplified biological assay, and the results were compared with those from leucorrhea culture, smear and PCR.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Forty-five patients were tuberculosis positive with 100% of specificity identified by phage amplified biological assay. Twenty patients were tuberculosis positive by PCR. Five patients were culture-positive tuberculosis and no case had smear-positive tuberculosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Phage amplified biologically assay is sensitive and specific, which could be used for the early diagnosis of female genital tuberculosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Guangzhou Chest Hospital, Guangzhou 510095, China. liubaoying169@sina.com
authors.forename: Bao-ying
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Mei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.forename: Yan-hong
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Meng-zhou
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Xiong
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques / Q000379:methods; D001435:Bacteriophages; D001681:Biological Assay / Q000379:methods*; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014384:Tuberculosis, Female Genital / Q000175:diagnosis*; D055815:Young Adult