Revised Guidelines on Tuberculosis Testing in the U.K.

Updated recommendations integrate new diagnostic tests into clinical practice and public health policy.

Although tuberculosis (TB) is an old public health problem, new diagnostic tools are forcing experts to reconsider some time-honored approaches to diagnosis. In particular, they must weigh the utility of the new interferon-γ release assays (IGRAs) for identifying latent disease and that of nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) for pinpointing pathogens and the presence of drug resistance. In the U.S., the CDC issued guidelines on use of IGRAs (MMWR Recomm Rep 2010; 59(RR-5):1) and use of NAATs for detecting TB (MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2013; 62:821) in 2010 and 2013, respectively. Now, the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has updated its recommendations.

Among the notable changes to NICE guidance on diagnosti…

Reviewing Author

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Abigail Zuger, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Revised Guidelines on Tuberculosis Testing in the U.K.

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Reviewing Author