Diagnosis of tuberculosis and detection of DR TB rapid communication

The World Health Organization (WHO) End TB Strategy emphasizes the importance of early tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis and universal access to drug-susceptibility testing (DST). Despite these efforts, significant diagnostic gaps persist globally. In 2022, an estimated 10.6 million people contracted TB, with 7.5 million newly diagnosed cases, but only 4.0 million were bacteriologically confirmed. Among these confirmed cases, 73% received DST for rifampicin, a key first-line anti-TB drug. TB detection remains particularly challenging in people with HIV and children. The latest update aims to evaluate the concurrent use of WHO-recommended rapid diagnostic tests for these vulnerable groups and to consolidate and update recommendations for low-complexity nucleic acid amplification tests (NAAT). Click here to download