Active clinical trials for "Tuberculosis"

In countries with a low incidence of Tuberculosis (TB), the incidence remains higher among the immigrant population than among the autochthonous population beyond the first years after arrival in the host country. In addition, at a pediatric level, most cases are produced in immigrant children and the children of immigrants. This persistence of a greater incidence in the immigrant population might, in part, be explained by the increase in exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis during trips to their country of origin to visit friends and relatives (VFRs). The objectives of the study are to estimate the risk of latent infection by M. tuberculosis (LTBI)/TB in children VFRs and the factors associated with this risk. The investigators will also study the behavior of the diagnostic tests. This project will be carried out in collaboration with 21 primary health care centers and 5 hospitals in Catalonia.

Severe tuberculosis (TB) leads to wasting and anorexia, increasing risk of the refeeding syndrome (RFS) as defined by current criteria. TB patients have high metabolic rates and require a high calorie diet, with nutritional supplementation programs improving outcomes. BMI inversely correlates with mortality in these patients. Risk of RFS, a life-threatening syndrome associated with initiation of feeding after a period of low intake, has not been studied in this population and it is not known whether severely malnourished TB patients benefit from lower caloric intake. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of RFS in TB inpatients in rural India and correlate this with baseline and inpatient caloric intake.

The recommendations for the treatment of MDR tuberculosis are based on pulmonary tuberculosis since there is a lack of specific recommendations for TB bone and osteoarticular disease, including those due to multi drug resistance strains (MDR IOATB). Given the lack of data regarding MDR IOATB, it may be helpful to study the diagnosis, medical treatment, surgical indications and prognosis of a cohort of MDR IOATB patients.

simple verbal intervention with figure of lung and upper respiratory tract will be helpful to adequately collecting sputum. and in the acceptable specimen based on Gram stain, positivity for AFB stain and culture rate will be higher.

Many centers routinely culture bronchoscopy samples for bacteria and mycobacteria even when infections including tuberculosis (TB) are not strongly suspected. However, the value of this practice has been poorly defined.

Background: Tuberculosis is a disease of the lungs caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis). The most popular and least expensive tool used to detect the presence of the tuberculosis bacteria is called sputum smears, which is a lab test used to look for bacteria in the sputum via a microscope. However, the test s results are not always accurate, and the test cannot determine if the bacteria will be resistant to standard tuberculosis treatments. The most sensitive test currently available is called sputum culture, in which a sputum sample is used to check for the growth of tuberculosis bacteria. However, this test takes at least a month to produce accurate results, and requires expensive equipment that is not available in many countries where M. tuberculosis is found. The urea breath test (UBT) has been used to detect infection with Helicobacter pylori, a bacteria associated with stomach ulcers, by testing individual breath samples. Researchers are interested in determining whether breath samples can also be used to detect the presence of M. tuberculosis in the lungs of subjects with tuberculosis, and to see if tuberculosis treatments are successful. Objectives: - To assess the sensitivity and specificity of urea breath testing in the diagnosis and treatment response of pulmonary tuberculosis. Eligibility: Individuals at least 18 years of age who either have been diagnosed with tuberculosis or are healthy volunteers with no past history of tuberculosis. The study will be conducted in Bamako, Mali. Design: This study will involve three groups: two pilot groups of individuals who have already been diagnosed with tuberculosis, and a primary study group of both healthy volunteers and individuals who have been diagnosed with tuberculosis. Participants will be screened with a physical examination and medical history, as well as blood, sputum, stool, and urine samples. First pilot group (one visit): Participants should not eat, drink, or smoke for at least 1 hour prior to the UBT test. Participants will provide a baseline exhaled air sample, and then will receive the UBT test, which involves a dose of Pranactin -Citric dissolved in water. Additional exhaled air samples will be collected at eight time points (10, 20, 45, 60, 90, 120, 180, and 240 minutes after the dose). Second pilot group (one or two visits): Participants should not eat, drink, or smoke for at least 1 hour prior to the UBT test. Participants will provide a baseline exhaled air sample, and then will receive the UBT test. Half of the participants will receive a dose of bismuth (Pepto-Bismol) prior to collection of air samples to see how this affects the results of the UBT test. Additional exhaled air samples will be collected at three time points specified by the study researchers. On the following day, participants will return for a second visit to provide three more exhaled air samples. Primary study group (five visits for participants with tuberculosis, two visits for healthy volunteers): All participants will have two visits, following the procedures given for the second pilot group. Half will receive a dose of bismuth prior to collection of air samples. Participants with tuberculosis will have three additional visits (days 6, 10, and 16 following the first study visit) to provide additional sputum and exhaled air samples to monitor the progress of tuberculosis treatment.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the role of high-resolution computed tomography of the chest (HRCT) in the investigation of an outbreak of TB that developed in the South Korean army.

The human homologue of mice natural-resistance-associated macrophage protein 1 (Nramp 1) gene, NRAMP 1, has been reported to play a role in the susceptibility to tuberculosis in humans. The aboriginal population in Taiwan has a 5-fold higher prevalence of tuberculosis than the Han Chinese. Whether genetic factors such as NRAMP 1 polymorphisms play a role in the prevalence of tuberculosis in Taiwanese aboriginals should be clarified.

Tuberculosis is still the most common infectious disease in Taiwan. The infants in Taiwan have been vaccinated at birth with BCG -Tokyo 171 strain since 1951. The BCG vaccination rate is 97% among first grade students in a recent national survey. Even with such a high BCG vaccination coverage, Taiwan still has a relatively high TB incidence rate. In 2004, there were totally 16,784 newly diagnosed TB cases and the annual incidence was 74.11 per 100,000 population nationally. Nearly 70% of the incidence cases were men and 30.4% were women. The mean age of incidence cases was 57.8 years old (median=63). 8,440(50.29%) patients were elderly than 65 years old. The elderly men did not receive the BCG vaccination and were the most important group to develop newly diagnosed tuberculosis and a special issue for the national TB control program in Taiwan. The tuberculin skin test (TST) is the only widely available method for detecting whether people have an immunologic reactivity to mycobacterial antigens and identified as latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Targeted tuberculin testing for latent TB infection is a very important strategy to identify subjects with high risk to develop tuberculosis including those who have recent infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis or have clinical conditions that associated with an increased risk for progression of LTBI to active TB but the sensitivity was lower in elderly patients. Quantiferon-TB gold test (QFT-RD1) is a new diagnostic test for latent tuberculosis and a valuable alternative to skin testing. This whole-blood assay measures the production of IFN-  in whole blood upon stimulation by ESAT-6 and CFP-10 and allows distinction of latent M. tuberculosis infection from BCG-induced reactivity. ESAT-6 and CFP-10 are deleted from BCG Region 1 (RD1), not present in most nontuberculous mycobacteria and are highly specific indicators of M. tuberculosis infection. Thus, the aim of this study was to estimate the specificity and sensitivity of a whole blood IFN-γassay employing CFP-10 and ESAT-6, for the detection of M. tuberculosis infection in a clustered high risk elderly population. Changhwa Veterans Home is a government-expense veterans home with totally 519 residents in 2004.The inhabitants were all elderly people and lived in groups. , They did not receive BCG vaccination and were the high risk group to develop endemic TB infection. The annual TB incidence rate over there was 3,500 per 100,000 population.

This is a pilot study to evaluate the performance of several nucleic acid amplification methodologies in the diagnosis and management of active tuberculosis