title: Combination of molecular assay and clinical evaluation for early confirmation of tuberculosis cases.
abstract: The cost-effectiveness of the ProbeTec ET Direct TB assay (DTB) was compared with that of culture for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in 361 acid-fast stain-positive respiratory specimens. The overall sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of DTB were 97.7%, 86.6%, 87.2% and 97.6%, respectively. When clinical evaluation was added to DTB, the specificity and positive predictive value of DTB increased to 94.7% and 95.4%, respectively. Treatment costs of $133,521 would have been saved in this cohort if DTB, instead of culture results, had been used to eliminate 'false-positive' smear results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: H-Z
authors.initials: HZ
authors.lastname: Tu
authors.forename: Y-S
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Y E
authors.initials: YE
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: M-R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: T-S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: H-C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Y-C
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D005189:False Positive Reactions; D006801:Humans; D025202:Molecular Diagnostic Techniques / Q000191:economics* / Q000379:methods*; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic / Q000191:economics*; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic