SynthesisEuropean respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society2024
Subclinical tuberculosis: a meta-analysis of prevalence and scoping review of definitions, prevalence and clinical characteristics.
Synthesis in European respiratory review : an official journal of the European Respiratory Society, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed.
- Tuberculosis disease and infection among household contacts of bacteriologically confirmed vs unconfirmed tuberculosis in Cambodia: considerations for optimising contact investigation and preventive treatment.Annals of medicine · 2026Article
- Centralized molecular testing of community-collected tongue swabs for tuberculosis screening among household contacts: a cross-sectional diagnostic performance, yield, and implementation study.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Asymptomatic Tuberculosis: The Silent Face of the Disease Among Migrants and Refugees and the Challenges in Brazil.Journal of immigrant and minority health · 2026Article
- Rapid molecular detection of TB drug resistance from swab samples: a proof of concept study.IJTLD open · 2026Article
- Lung function impairment at pulmonary TB and HIV/TB diagnosis: a South African cross-sectional cohort analysis.BMJ open respiratory research · 2026Article
- Diagnostic value of nanopore-based targeted sequencing technology for subclinical tuberculosis.BMC microbiology · 2026Article
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis transmission from tuberculosis patients with and without recognized symptoms: a case-contact study in eastern China.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Asymptomatic tuberculosis detected in health screening predicts favourable outcome.ERJ open research · 2026Article
- Asymptomatic tuberculosis in Japan: a 15-year national surveillance study, 2008-2022.The Lancet regional health. Western Pacific · 2026Article
- Series 3: From Infection to Disease: A Global Scoping Review of Medical and Behavioural Determinants of Progression from TB Infection to TB Disease.Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2026Review
- Transmissibility and Disease Progression of Asymptomatic Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection, Lima, Peru.Emerging infectious diseases · 2026Article
- The hidden burden: a regional study revealing the substantial burden and distinct epidemiology of asymptomatic pulmonary tuberculosis in Southern China.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Reappraising TB preventive treatment in India: programmatic and ethical implications of subclinical tuberculosis in household contacts.The Lancet regional health. Southeast Asia · 2026Review
- Post-tuberculosis lung disease: a guide for clinicians.Infection · 2026Review
- Factors associated with tuberculosis symptom reporting among persons deprived of liberty in Brazil during active case finding: a cross-sectional study.BMJ public health · 2026Article
- Using Imaris to rigorously track PET-defined sites of lung inflammation inAmerican journal of diagnostic imaging · 2026Article
- Post-tuberculosis lung disease.Breathe (Sheffield, England) · 2026Review
- Managing tuberculosis infection among migrants from high-incidence tuberculosis countries: challenges, strategies and recommendations.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2026Review
- Treatment of asymptomatic tuberculosis: Protocol for a systematic review of treatment strategies, regimens, and clinical outcomes.PloS one · 2026Article
- The underdiagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis in non-TB-designated health facilities in China: a nationwide retrospective study.BMC infectious diseases · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThis scoping review aimed to characterise definitions used to describe subclinical tuberculosis (TB), estimate the prevalence in different populations and describe the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes in the scientific literature.
methodsA systematic literature search was conducted using PubMed. We included studies published in English between January 1990 and August 2022 that defined "subclinical" or "asymptomatic" pulmonary TB disease, regardless of age, HIV status and comorbidities. We estimated the weighted pooled proportions of subclinical TB using a random-effects model by World Health Organization reported TB incidence, populations and settings. We also pooled the proportion of subclinical TB according to definitions described in published prevalence surveys.
resultsWe identified 29 prevalence surveys and 71 other studies. Prevalence survey data (2002-2022) using "absence of cough of any duration" criteria reported higher subclinical TB prevalence than those using the stricter "completely asymptomatic" threshold. Prevalence estimates overlap in studies using other symptoms and cough duration. Subclinical TB in studies was commonly defined as asymptomatic TB disease. Higher prevalence was reported in high TB burden areas, community settings and immunocompetent populations. People with subclinical TB showed less extensive radiographic abnormalities, higher treatment success rates and lower mortality, although studies were few.
conclusionA substantial proportion of TB is subclinical. However, prevalence estimates were highly heterogeneous between settings. Most published studies incompletely characterised the phenotype of people with subclinical TB. Standardised definitions and diagnostic criteria are needed to characterise this phenotype. Further research is required to enhance case finding, screening, diagnostics and treatment options for subclinical TB.
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