Article: Comparison of T-Spot.TB and tuberculin skin test among silicotic patients
| Title | Comparison of T-Spot.TB and tuberculin skin test among silicotic patients |
|---|---|
| Authors | Leung, CC1 3 Yam, WC2 Yew, WW4 Ho, PL2 Tam, CM3 Law, WS3 Wong, MY3 Leung, M3 Tsui, D3 |
| Keywords | Latent tuberculosis infection Silicosis Smoking |
| Issue Date | 2008 |
| Publisher | European Respiratory Society. The Journal's web site is located at http://erj.ersjournals.com |
| Citation | European Respiratory Journal, 2008, v. 31 n. 2, p. 266-272 [How to Cite?] DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00054707 |
| Abstract | In the present study, T-Spot.TB and the tuberculin skin test (TST) were compared in the screening of latent tuberculosis infection among silicotic patients. A conditional probability model was used to compare the potential clinical utilities of T-Spot.TB and TST performed on 134 silicotic subjects from December 1, 2004 to January 31, 2007. Data from a historical cohort were also reanalysed for further comparison. Agreement with T-Spot.TB was best using a TST cut-off of 10 mm. Age ≥65 yrs independently predicted a tuberculin reaction <10 mm (odds ratio=3), but not a negative T-Spot.TB response. Lower measures of agreement were observed among current smokers and those aged ≥65 yrs. Tuberculin reaction size was well correlated with both early secretary antigenic target 6 and culture filtrate protein 10 spot counts, except among current smokers. Within the current estimates of sensitivity (88-95%) and specificity (86-99%) for T-Spot.TB, the positive likelihood ratio for T-Spot.TB test would be substantially higher (6.29-95.0 versus 1.65-1.94) and negative likelihood ratio substantially lower (0.05-0.14 versus 0.32-0.41) than the corresponding ratios for the tuberculin test. A low tuberculosis risk differential was similarly observed between tuberculin-negative and untreated tuberculin-positive subjects in the historical cohort. T-Spot.TB is likely to perform better than tuberculin test in the screening of latent tuberculosis infection among silicotic subjects. Copyright©ERS Journals Ltd 2008. |
| ISSN | 0903-1936 2011 Impact Factor: 5.895 2011 SCImago Journal Rankings: 0.466 |
| DOI | http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00054707 |
| ISI Accession Number ID | WOS:000253038400009 |
| References | References in Scopus |
| dc.contributor.author | Leung, CC |
|---|---|
| dc.contributor.author | Yam, WC |
| dc.contributor.author | Yew, WW |
| dc.contributor.author | Ho, PL |
| dc.contributor.author | Tam, CM |
| dc.contributor.author | Law, WS |
| dc.contributor.author | Wong, MY |
| dc.contributor.author | Leung, M |
| dc.contributor.author | Tsui, D |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2012-08-08T08:50:41Z |
| dc.date.available | 2012-08-08T08:50:41Z |
| dc.date.issued | 2008 |
| dc.description.abstract | In the present study, T-Spot.TB and the tuberculin skin test (TST) were compared in the screening of latent tuberculosis infection among silicotic patients. A conditional probability model was used to compare the potential clinical utilities of T-Spot.TB and TST performed on 134 silicotic subjects from December 1, 2004 to January 31, 2007. Data from a historical cohort were also reanalysed for further comparison. Agreement with T-Spot.TB was best using a TST cut-off of 10 mm. Age ≥65 yrs independently predicted a tuberculin reaction <10 mm (odds ratio=3), but not a negative T-Spot.TB response. Lower measures of agreement were observed among current smokers and those aged ≥65 yrs. Tuberculin reaction size was well correlated with both early secretary antigenic target 6 and culture filtrate protein 10 spot counts, except among current smokers. Within the current estimates of sensitivity (88-95%) and specificity (86-99%) for T-Spot.TB, the positive likelihood ratio for T-Spot.TB test would be substantially higher (6.29-95.0 versus 1.65-1.94) and negative likelihood ratio substantially lower (0.05-0.14 versus 0.32-0.41) than the corresponding ratios for the tuberculin test. A low tuberculosis risk differential was similarly observed between tuberculin-negative and untreated tuberculin-positive subjects in the historical cohort. T-Spot.TB is likely to perform better than tuberculin test in the screening of latent tuberculosis infection among silicotic subjects. Copyright©ERS Journals Ltd 2008. |
| dc.description.nature | Link_to_subscribed_fulltext |
| dc.identifier.citation | European Respiratory Journal, 2008, v. 31 n. 2, p. 266-272 [How to Cite?] DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00054707 |
| dc.identifier.doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00054707 |
| dc.identifier.epage | 272 |
| dc.identifier.isi | WOS:000253038400009 |
| dc.identifier.issn | 0903-1936 2011 Impact Factor: 5.895 2011 SCImago Journal Rankings: 0.466 |
| dc.identifier.issue | 2 |
| dc.identifier.scopus | eid_2-s2.0-40649086465 |
| dc.identifier.spage | 266 |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10722/157509 |
| dc.identifier.volume | 31 |
| dc.language | eng |
| dc.publisher | European Respiratory Society. The Journal's web site is located at http://erj.ersjournals.com |
| dc.publisher.place | Switzerland |
| dc.relation.ispartof | European Respiratory Journal |
| dc.relation.references | References in Scopus |
| dc.subject | Latent tuberculosis infection |
| dc.subject | Silicosis |
| dc.subject | Smoking |
| dc.title | Comparison of T-Spot.TB and tuberculin skin test among silicotic patients |
| dc.type | Article |
Author Affiliations
- Pneumoconiosis Clinic
- The University of Hong Kong
- Centre for Health Protection
- Grantham Hospital Hong Kong

