Evaluation of Xpert MTB/RIF testing for rapid diagnosis of childhood pulmonary tuberculosis in children by Xpert MTB/RIF testing of stool samples in a low resource setting

Zahra Hasan, Aga Khan University
Sadia Shakoor, Aga Khan University
Fehmina Arif, Dow University of Health Sciences
Aisha Mehnaz, Dow University of Health Sciences
Alnoor Akber, Aga Khan University
Marium Haider, Dow University of Health Sciences
Akber Kanji, Aga Khan University
Rumina Hasan, Aga Khan University

Abstract

Objective: Children with tuberculosis (TB) remain underdiagnosed due to difculty in testing for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection. We evaluated the Xpert MTB/RIF assay for respiratory and stool testing in children for pulmonary TB through a cross-sectional study at tertiary care facilities in Karachi, Pakistan. Fifty children aged 0–15 years screened by a modifed Kenneth-Jones (KJ) score were included. Mycobacterial culture of respiratory samples was the microbiological standard against stool Xpert TB results. All positive TB cases were compared against a treatment response standard (TRS).
Results: Twelve study subjects were diagnosed by Xpert TB and nine by MTB culture. Compared with culture [gastric aspirates (GA)/sputum (spm)], stool Xpert TB had a sensitivity of 88.9% (95% CI 50.7–99.4) and a specifcity of 95% (95% CI 81.8–99.1). Xpert TB stool versus GA/spm had sensitivity of 81.8% (95% CI 47.8–96.8) and specifcity of 94.7% (95% CI 84.6–99.9). We found good agreement (kappa scores of >0.8) between stool Xpert, GA/spm Xpert and GA/ spm culture. Stool Xpert PPV and NPV against TRS was 100 and 82.1% respectively. Stool Xpert TB is a relatively easy option for diagnosis for pulmonary childhood TB in a high burden low-resource setting