Tb Patients at risk

A recently introduced blood test can reveal which patients may develop active tuberculosis (TB) much more precisely than the 100-year old TB skin test, according to a new study published today in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. Around a third of the world's population is infected with the TB bacteria and approximately 9 million new cases of active TB are diagnosed around the world each year, according to World Health Organisation estimates. The majority of those infected live in the developing world. The researchers believe that the ELISpot blood test can enable preventative treatment to be targeted in a more focused way than the tuberculin skin test. Unlike the blood test, the skin test commonly gives falsely positive results if a patient has previously been vaccinated against TB.