ArticleThe European respiratory journal2025
Rapid quantitative PCR on tongue swabs for pulmonary tuberculosis in adults: a prospective multicentre study.
Article in The European respiratory journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed.
- Integrative profiling of oral fungal communities acrossAnnals of medicine · 2026Article
- Clinical Evaluation of a Tandem qPCR-CRISPR Assay for Multidrug-Resistant or Rifampicin-Resistant Tuberculosis: A Prospective Diagnostic Accuracy Study.Microorganisms · 2026Article
- An optimal processing method for recovery of tuberculosis in the tongue swab using theMicrobiology spectrum · 2026Article
- Community-based chest X-ray screening versus symptom-based case presentation in the elderly: evidence from three consecutive years of data.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Tongue swab-based Targeted Universal Tuberculosis Testing in people living with HIV in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Accuracy of nanopore-based targeted next-generation sequencing assay for detection ofJournal of clinical microbiology · 2026Article
- Tongue swabmedRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Research overview-2025: integrating scientific progress to accelerate global tuberculosis elimination.Frontiers in tuberculosis · 2026Article
- Testing tongue swab samples by Cepheid Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra: comparison of two protocols applied to samples from persons with low-bacillary load TB.Microbiology spectrum · 2025Article
- Potential impact, costs, and benefits of population-wide screening interventions for tuberculosis in Viet Nam: A mathematical modelling study.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
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20 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundTuberculosis (TB) remains a major cause of infectious disease mortality globally, with significant underdiagnosis perpetuating transmission. Tongue swab analysis has emerged as a promising non-invasive method for pulmonary TB diagnosis. This study evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of the TB-EASY quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay using tongue swab specimens.
methodsIn this prospective multicentre study, conducted across seven designated TB hospitals in China, 729 participants were included in the analysis. Tongue swabs were tested using the new TB-EASY assay from Hugobiotech, while sputum samples were analysed by Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert), smear and culture tests. Diagnostic performance was compared to a composite microbiological reference standard (MRS).
resultsThe TB-EASY assay demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy, with sensitivity and specificity of 89.6% and 96.2% compared to sputum Xpert, and 87.4% and 98.0% compared to the MRS. Sensitivity varied by bacterial load, ranging from 100% in high-load cases to 70.4% in very-low-load cases. The assay demonstrated robust performance in diverse epidemiological settings.
conclusionsThe TB-EASY qPCR assay using tongue swabs offers a reliable, non-invasive diagnostic alternative for pulmonary TB, especially where sputum collection is challenging. Its potential for wider use in high TB burden settings warrants further validation in community-based studies. Limitations include potential overestimation of sensitivity due to the selection of symptomatic patients and the use of sputum Xpert rather than Xpert Ultra. Additionally, the performance in non-sputum-producing patients remains untested, and the cost-effectiveness should be further evaluated to assess the feasibility of its implementation.
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