ArticleBMJ open2025
Cost-effectiveness analysis comparing QuantiFERON test and tuberculin skin test for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection in immunocompetent children under 15 years of age in Colombia.
Article in BMJ open, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Clinical practice guideline for the evaluation, treatment, and follow-up of children in contact with patients with pulmonary tuberculosis in Colombia.Colombia medica (Cali, Colombia)Guideline
- Strategies for Tuberculosis Prevention in Healthcare Settings: A Narrative Review.Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo determine the cost-effectiveness of the QuantiFERON (QFT) test versus the tuberculin skin test (TST) in diagnosing latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in immunocompetent children under 15 years of age who are in contact with active tuberculosis (TB) patients in the context of the Colombian healthcare system.
designHealth economic evaluation. Decision tree over a horizon of <1 year.
settingFrom the perspective of the Colombian healthcare system, the direct healthcare costs related to tests were considered, and diagnostic performance was used as a measure of effectiveness. The currency was the US dollar (US$) for the year 2022, with a cost-effectiveness threshold of US$6666.
participantsA simulated hypothetical cohort of 2000 immunocompetent children under 15 years of age who are in contact with active TB patients and were vaccinated with BCG at birth.
interventionsQFT test and TST to detect LTBI. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was estimated, and univariate deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted using 5000 simulations.
resultsQFT was found to be cost-effective with an ICER of US$705 for each correctly diagnosed case. In the one-way deterministic sensitivity analysis, QFT remained cost-effective across nearly all proposed scenarios; however, the QFT was considered 'potentially cost-effective' when TST specificity reached its highest value. The ICER was unaffected by variations in LTBI prevalence. In the probabilistic sensitivity analysis, QFT was cost-effective in 85.06% of the simulated scenarios, while TST was dominant in 11.8%.
conclusionsThis study provides evidence of the cost-effectiveness of QFT compared with TST in diagnosing LTBI among immunocompetent children under 15 years who have been in contact with active TB patients in the Colombian context.
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