Immunological assays in the diagnosis of tuberculosis infection at the beginning of 21st century

Abstract

A subject infected by tubercle bacilli may immediately develop the disease (primary tuberculosis), witch occurs in a few number of infected persons, or may overcome the primary infection (a latent carrier of the infection). Nowadays there are about two milliard people with a latent tubercular infection. About 10% of them will develop active tuberculosis during their lifetime. Detection of latent tuberculosis and its treatment decreases the risk of developing the active form of the disease. Until recently, the tuberculin test was a single screening method to identify the subjects with tubercular infection. In recent years, some novel in vitro tests to diagnose the tubercular infection have been designed. These tests measure the cell-mediated immune response quantifying the emission of interferon gamma by T cells in response to stimulation by Mycobacterium tuberculosis specific antigens. These tests are more sensitive and specific than the tuberculin skin test, but they are just an accessory tool, i.e., a link in the diagnostic chain of the tubercular infection.

Tuberculosis in a developing country — how much patients know about disease

“…Unemployment rose from 10.1% in 1993 to 14.8% in 2003 in most developed parts of the country [5,6]. At the same time, in Serbia, the incidence of TB increased from 28 per 100,000 to 37.6.…”

“…The program's goal of reducing the TB incidence in Serbia from 37.6 per 100,000 in 2003 to 25 in a five-year period was achieved in 2009, when TB incidence was 23.2 per 100,000. In addition, one of the goals of this program was to improve knowledge about TB (symptoms, risk factors, ways of transmission, relationship to patients) in the general population [7,[12][13][14].…”