Tuberc Respir Dis.  2015 Jul;78(3):227-231. 10.4046/trd.2015.78.3.227.

Changes in Diagnostic Methods for Pulmonary Tuberculosis between 2005 and 2013

• Ahn B
• Kim J
• Yoo CG
• Kim YW
• Han SK
• Yim JJ

• KMID: 2320647
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4046/trd.2015.78.3.227

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Diagnostic methods for pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) have recently advanced. The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes in TB diagnostic tests that prompted the initiation of anti-TB treatment over time in South Korea, an industrialized country with an intermediate TB burden.
METHODS
Patients diagnosed with pulmonary TB in the first halves of 2005 and 2013 at a tertiary referral hospital were included. Diagnostic methods that prompted the initiation of anti-TB treatment were compared between the 2 groups of patients.
RESULTS
A greater proportion of patients were diagnosed with pulmonary TB using bronchoscopy in 2013 than in 2005 (26.7% vs. 6.6%, respectively; p<0.001), while the proportion of patients clinically diagnosed with pulmonary TB was lower in 2013 than in 2005 (24.7% vs. 49.0%, respectively; p<0.001). Additionally, more patients started anti-TB treatment based on positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results for Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA in 2013 than in 2005 (47.3% vs. 7.9%, respectively; p<0.001).
CONCLUSION
The initiation of treatment for pulmonary TB in South Korea has become more frequently based on PCR and the use of bronchoscopic specimens.

Keyword

Tuberculosis, Pulmonary; Diagnosis; Bronchoscopy; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques

MeSH Terms

Bronchoscopy
Developed Countries
Diagnosis
Diagnostic Tests, Routine
DNA
Humans
Korea
Methods*
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Tertiary Care Centers
Tuberculosis, Pulmonary*
DNA

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