Advances in Tuberculosis Testing


A free, online, on demand webinar
Sponsored by the AACC and Supported by Cepheid

The Global Burden of Tuberculosis (TB)
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that globally, 9 million people develop TB each year and two million die of the disease. Of those diagnosed with TB, over one million are also HIV positive. Most of the cases occur in resource-limited countries where rapid diagnosis and treatment can be challenging, therefore increasing the spread of the disease.

Multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB)
MDR-TB is defined as the disease caused by TB bacilli resistant to at least isoniazid and rifampicin, the two most powerful anti-TB drugs available. In 2008, the WHO estimated that there were 440,000 cases of MDR-TB. The four countries that had the largest number of estimated cases of MDR-TB were China, India, Russia and South Africa. MDR-TB poses a serious threat to controlling the spread of disease.

Recent Advances
Many countries still rely principally on sputum smear microscopy, a diagnostic method that was developed over 100 years ago. Recently new technologies have been developed that can detect MDR-TB within hours rather than days. This has resulted in a quick diagnosis and crucially, needed rapid treatment that helps prevent the spread of disease.

This program will review the WHO’s recommendations on TB testing technologies and includes a case study from a leading laboratorian in the field of TB diagnosis and management.

Laboratory Diagnosis of Tuberculosis:
WHO Endorsed Technologies                                             View Presentation

Technological Advances in TB Testing                           View Presentation


Matthew J. Bankowski, PhD, Vice President - Technical Director,
Clinical and Molecular Microbiology and Infectious Disease,
Diagnostic Laboratory Services and The Queens Medical Center,
Hawaii Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, John A. Burns School of Medicine,
University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI