Guidelines for New, Faster TB Test

CDC has released new guidelines that call for nucleic acid amplification testing to be performed on patients with suspected pulmonary TB. The agency's recommendations reflect the increasing use of NAA tests in diagnosing the bacterial infection. NAA test guidelines were last updated in 2000.

Last summer, CDC and the Association of Public Health Laboratories convened a panel to review existing guidelines and make recommendations to incorporate NAA tests into standard practice. NAA testing can confirm pulmonary TB weeks faster than conventional testing, which includes acid-fast bacilli smear and TB culture.

The new guidelines include revised procedures for testing and interpreting results, and provide advice for clinicians to ensure accuracy and cost savings in interpretation of NAA test results.

The recommendations, "Updated Guidelines for the Use of Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests in the Diagnosis of Tuberculosis" were published in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (2009;58(01):7-10).

Back to other news for January 2009