Advantages and Limitations of TB Diagnostic Culture Methods

Advantages of TB Diagnostics through Culture methods are as follows:

• Used for testing both the pulmonary & Extra-pulmonary Tuberculosis (EP-TB) specimens for drug susceptibility to first as well as second-line anti-TB drugs
• Used to monitor response to treatment and for long-term follow-up
• Have higher sensitivity and specificity than the molecular testing for TB; referred to as Gold Standards
• Useful in identifying live bacteria during treatment follow-up of Drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) cases, where genotypic methods may prove misleading

Limitations of TB Diagnostic through Culture Methods are as follows:

• Turnaround time for cultures for TB diagnosis is longer than the molecular testing for TB
• There is a higher rate of contamination in liquid culture
• Cannot be maintained at all levels of the healthcare system as specialized labs are required for them
• They require a sophisticated laboratory with expensive infrastructure and laboratory equipment along with trained microbiologists

Resources

• Guidelines for Programmatic Management of Drug Resistant TB In India, 2021.

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