Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31143725›Full record

ArticleJournal of family medicine and primary care2019

Xpert negative means no TB: A mixed-methods study into early implementation of Xpert in Puducherry, India.

Ariarathinam Newtonraj, Emilie Venables, Kalaiselvi Selvaraj, Debashish Kundu, Anil Jacob Purty, Mani Manikandan, Hemant Deepak Shewade

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of family medicine and primary care, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 38% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. The diagnostic yield of brushing versus non-brushing bronchoalveolar lavage fluid for Xpert MTB/RIF in patients with suspected tuberculosis: a prospective self-controlled study.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.

Ariarathinam NewtonrajDepartment of Community Medicine, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry, India.
Emilie VenablesLuxembourg Operational Research Unit, Médecins Sans Frontières, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.
Kalaiselvi SelvarajDepartment of Community Medicine, AIIMS, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India.
Debashish KunduInternational Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union), South-East Asia Office, New Delhi, India.
Anil Jacob PurtyDepartment of Community Medicine, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry, India.
Mani ManikandanDepartment of Community Medicine, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry, India.
Hemant Deepak ShewadeInternational Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union), South-East Asia Office, New Delhi, India.
Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences · INAll India Institute of Medical Sciences Bhopal · INInternational Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease · FRMédecins Sans Frontières · LU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionXpert MTB/RIF was implemented in 2016 as the initial diagnostic test for extrapulmonary, pediatric, and human immunodeficiency virus-associated tuberculosis (TB) and as an add-on test for sputum microscopy-negative patients under Revised National TB Control Programme, Puducherry, India. We intended to study the change in TB case notification rates (CNRs) after 2015 and explore the enablers and barriers for implementation of Xpert. MATERIALS AND

methodsSequential mixed-methods study, quantitative phase followed by a descriptive qualitative phase (key informant interviews with healthcare providers in the program).

resultsThe TB (all forms) CNR increased in 2016 followed by a drop to 2015 levels in 2017. There was a reduction in patients notified as sputum-negative pulmonary TB and pediatric TB during 2016-2017. Healthcare providers used a negative Xpert result in ruling out TB among patients who would previously get diagnosed clinically. Perceived benefits of Xpert were efficiency, rapid results, and detecting resistance. Barriers included poor awareness among medical colleges and the private sector, difficulty in motivating sputum microscopy-negative patients for Xpert, and incompletely filled referral forms.

conclusionXpert-negative results should be interpreted cautiously after clinical assessment. Identified barriers should be addressed to ensure that all eligible undergo testing.

Indexed as

Cartridge-based nucleic acid amplification testIndiainitial diagnostic tool for TBoperational researchStructured Operational Research and Training Initiative

Identifiers

PMID31143725
PMCPMC6510069
OpenAlexW2940692714

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.