Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36622234›Full record

ArticleMicrobiology spectrum2023

Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Using the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra Assay on the Stool of Pediatric Patients in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

Michael L Rekart, Lidiya Mun, Aung Aung, Diana Gomez, Winston Mulanda, Jarmila Kliescikova, Norman Sitali, Asliddin Rajabov, Shahnoza Azamova, Bobojon Pirmahmadzoda and 5 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Microbiology spectrum, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
2.3field-weighted citation impact, top 12% 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

9 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 12 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Diagnostic accuracy of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra for detecting pulmonary tuberculosis and rifampicin resistance: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2025
    Pooled it
  3. Trial
  4. Stool Processing Methods for Xpert Ultra Testing in Childhood Tuberculosis: A Prospective, Multicountry Accuracy Study.Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2026
    Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Stool XpertIJTLD open · 2024
    Article
  9. Household drug-resistant TB contact tracing in Tajikistan.The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease · 2023
    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

15 authors at 5 institutions in 5 countries.

Michael L RekartMédecins sans Frontières, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Lidiya MunMédecins sans Frontières, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Aung AungMédecins sans Frontières, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Diana GomezMédecins sans Frontières, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Winston MulandaMédecins sans Frontières, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Jarmila KliescikovaMédecins sans Frontières, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Norman SitaliMédecins sans Frontières, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Asliddin RajabovNational Tuberculosis Programme, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Shahnoza AzamovaNational Tuberculosis Programme, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Bobojon PirmahmadzodaDushanbe City TB Center, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Jay AcharDepartment of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Jose Luis AlvarezMédecins sans Frontières, London, United Kingdom.
Jane GreigMédecins sans Frontières, London, United Kingdom.
Philipp du CrosBurnet Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Animesh SinhaMédecins sans Frontières, London, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0003-3213-7813
Médecins Sans Frontières · NLBurnet Institute · AUMédecins Sans Frontières‎ · GBNational Tuberculosis Institute · INKarolinska Institutet · SE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

We report the findings of a prospective laboratory diagnostic accuracy study to evaluate the sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra assay for Mycobacterium tuberculosis detection in fresh stool specimens from children under 15 years of age with confirmed tuberculosis (TB) disease from Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Six hundred eighty-eight (688) participants were enrolled from April 2019 to October 2021. We identified 16 participants (2.3%) with confirmed TB disease, defined as ≥1 TB sign/symptom plus microbiologic confirmation. With the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra assay for stool, we found a sensitivity of 68.8% (95% CI, 46.0 to 91.5) and a specificity of 98.7% (95% CI, 97.8 to 99.5) in confirmed TB disease. Our results are comparable to other published studies; however, our cohort was larger and our confirmed TB disease rate lower than most. We also demonstrated that this assay was feasible to implement in a centralized hospital laboratory in a low-middle-income Central Asian country. However, we encountered obstacles such as lack of staffing, material ruptures, outdated government protocols, and decreased case presentation due to COVID-19. We found eight patients whose only positive test was an Xpert Ultra stool assay. None needed treatment during the study; however, three were treated later, suggesting such cases require close observation. Our report is the first from Central Asia and one of a few from a low-middle-income country. We believe our study demonstrates the generalizability of the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra assay on fresh stool specimens from children and provides further evidence supporting WHO's approval of this diagnostic strategy.

Indexed as

Antibiotics, AntitubercularCOVID-19Mycobacterium tuberculosisTuberculosisTuberculosis, PulmonaryChildHumansProspective StudiesRifampinSensitivity and SpecificitySputumTajikistanAntibiotics, AntitubercularRifampinMycobacterium tuberculosispediatric infectious diseasestoolXpert MTB/Rif Ultra

Identifiers

PMID36622234
PMCPMC9927097
OpenAlexW4313857409

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.