Acta clinica Croatica, Vol. 62. No. 3, 2023.
Review article
https://doi.org/10.20471/acc.2023.62.03.15
The Role of Interferon-Gamma Release Assays in Diagnosis of Latent Tuberculosis Infection in Children
Mateja Šegović
; Health Center of Varaždin County, Varaždin, Croatia
*
Iva Mihatov Štefanović
; Department of Pediatrics, Sestre milosrdnice University Hospital Center, Zagreb, Croatia; School of Dental Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Ivan Pavić
; Department of Pulmonology, Allergology, Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Zagreb Children’s Hospital, Zagreb, Croatia; School of Medicine, University of Split, Split, Croatia
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
Despite numerous published papers, diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection
(LTBI) in children is still an undefined area. The importance of this topic lies in the fact that one third
of the world’s population is infected with Mycobacterium (M.) tuberculosis. The majority of infected individuals
are LTBI cases which make a reservoir for future active tuberculosis (TB) patients. The gold
standard for LTBI detection is still undetermined and this is due to the effect of various confounding
factors on existing diagnostic tests. Until a decade or so ago, throughout the last century, tuberculin
skin test (TST) was the only diagnostic test for LTBI. Due to scientific advances, new in vitro assays,
interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) were discovered recently. The sensitivities of IGRAs are a
bit better than those of TST, while great progress has been made in increasing the specificity of IGRA
relative to TST. Nevertheless, in the diagnosis of LTBI in children, TST still has some advantages.
However, generations of IGRAs have brought many diagnostic advantages that are emphasized in this
review. In a difficult procedure of diagnosing LTBI in children, performance of IGRA could be the
key factor in making decision whether to use preventive therapy or not.
Keywords
Children; Interferon-gamma release assay; Tuberculin skin test; Latent tuberculosis
Hrčak ID:
315080
URI
Publication date:
1.11.2023.
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