Abstract
Although curable, TB caused 1.4 million deaths in 2011 alone. Tuberculosis remains a leading cause of death among children, women of reproductive age, and people co-infected with HIV. Effective diagnosis is essential for TB care and control, but many people with active TB do not have access to initial diagnostics.
WHO reports that overall TB case detection is still less than 60% in low-income countries (LICs) and only 66% globally. That is, of an estimated 8.7 million people who became ill with TB in 2011, 2.9 million with active disease were not diagnosed and notified to national TB control programs. In addition, only 19% of MDR-TB cases were appropriately diagnosed and notified. Drug susceptibility testing (DST) can be used to assess drug resistance and guide appropriate treatment, but fewer than 1 in 20 new TB patients has access. Many existing diagnostics are inadequate for people living with HIV (PLHIV), patients with extrapulmonary TB, and children.
