Xpert MTB/RIF test for detection of pulmonary tuberculosis and rifampicin resistance (Protocol)

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the world’s most important infectious causes of morbidity and mortality among adults. An estimated one-third of the world’s population is infected with TB. In 2010, there were 8.8 million new, and 12.0 million prevalent cases of TB; 1.1 million deaths occurred among HIV-uninfected people and an additional 0.35 million deaths among HIV-infected people (WHO 2011a). Of the total new TB cases, an estimated 12% to 14% occurred among people living with HIV. Approximately one million TB cases occur in children younger than 15 years old annually (Marais 2010a). In 2010, the three countries with the highest number of new TB cases were India, China, and...