Latent TB prevalence in China may be overestimated

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College in Beijing have found tuberculin skin testing may be overestimating the prevalence of latent tuberculosis in China. They suggest that Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination and age might affect the performance of the tuberculin skin test (TST) compared with QuantiFERON (interferon-gamma release assay, Qiagen). “Our results provide valuable insight into the prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection in countries with a high burden, but medium incidence, of tuberculosis where BCG vaccination is routinely given,” the researchers wrote in Lancet Infectious Diseases. “Specifically for China, our results suggest that the rate of latent infection is not as high as previously described. This finding suggests that community-based preventive interventions to control disease development from latent tuberculosis might be practical for individuals at high risk for developing active diseases.” From July 2013 through September 2013, the researchers conducted a baseline survey of a population-based, multicenter...