Abstract
Background: Tuberculosis is a health problem in Sudan and may become a greater challenge in the future due to the weakness in infection prevention measures, increase in cases of drug-resistant and the difficulty of diagnosis. Objective: The aim of this study was to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) from sputum of clinically suspected patients using the three available techniques. Methods: Three hundred participants referred to Wad Madani Tuberculosis Center during 2017-2019 were included. Early morning fresh sputum samples were subjected to Mycobacterium tuberculosis examination by Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) stain without concentration, ZN stain with centrifugation and geneXpert assay. Results: Of the 300 suspected cases; Mycobacterium tuberculosis detected in 17% (51/300) by ZN stain without concentration, 20% (59/300) by ZN stain with centrifugation and 34% (103/300) by geneXpert. The two techniques of ZN stains possessed 100% specificity and relative differences in sensitivity when compared to geneXpert assay. The significant association observed between ZN stains and geneXpert results indicated validity of ZN techniques for detection. Conclusions: The study confirmed that geneXpert is better for identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis when compared to ZN techniques which are also important for diagnosis in poor places and where the geneXpert assay is not available.
Highlights
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease of lungs, abdomen and skin caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis
The study confirmed that geneXpert is better for identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis when compared to ZN techniques which are important for diagnosis in poor places and where the geneXpert assay is not available
Smear microscopy enables to differentiate between Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) and non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) [20]
Summary
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease of lungs, abdomen and skin caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Successful elimination of TB needs selection of appropriate method for rabid and accurate detection, and this reduces mortality and transmission rates [4] For several reasons, such as ease and low cost, ZN stain is used for diagnosis of tuberculosis in most developing countries where as culturing which has been considered as the golden standard method is not routinely used [1] [5] [6] [7] [8]. GeneXpert assay has become an important part of tuberculosis diagnostic algorithms in many low- and middle-income countries [15] [16] Despite this effectiveness, smear for microscopy remains the primary diagnostic method for tuberculosis. Conclusions: The study confirmed that geneXpert is better for identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis when compared to ZN techniques which are important for diagnosis in poor places and where the geneXpert assay is not available
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