False-positive Xpert(®) MTB/RIF assays in previously treated patients: need for caution in interpreting results.
Abstract
Xpert(®) MTB/RIF is the initial diagnostic test of choice for tuberculosis (TB). It is not known if false-positive results are more common in previously treated patients. We report four patients with successful treatment for TB up to 5 years previously who presented with respiratory tract infection and were Xpert-positive, but had negative TB cultures and clinical improvement without anti-tuberculosis treatment. We hypothesise that the Xpert results were false-positive due to the presence of dead Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacilli in lungs and sputum. Further work is required to determine the specificity of Xpert in previously treated patients.PubMed ID
24902569Language
enISSN
1815-7920ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.5588/ijtld.13.0853
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