Tuberculosis in the 1990's: From bedside to bench and back

Since the mid‐1980s, the rate of new cases of tuberculosis (TB) diagnosed in Canada ceased to follow a downward trend, and has instead stabilized at approximately 7 cases/100,000 population. In the United States, a similar trend emerged, such that in the early 1990s there was an increase in new case...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian respiratory journal 1999, Vol.6 (4), p.341-344
Main Authors: Jamieson, F B, Chedore, P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteriological Techniques - trends
Canada - epidemiology
Clinical Laboratory Techniques - trends
Humans
Mycobacterium tuberculosis - isolation & purification
Tuberculosis - diagnosis
Tuberculosis - epidemiology
United States - epidemiology
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Since the mid‐1980s, the rate of new cases of tuberculosis (TB) diagnosed in Canada ceased to follow a downward trend, and has instead stabilized at approximately 7 cases/100,000 population. In the United States, a similar trend emerged, such that in the early 1990s there was an increase in new cases of TB. Outbreaks of drug‐resistant TB also occurred with devastating clinical impact. These observations prompted laboratories to re‐examine their role in halting the spread of TB. Laboratories play a critical part in the diagnosis of TB; procedures must be optimized to provide rapid and accurate results. This review discusses the role of the mycobacteriology laboratory in the diagnosis of TB, and how new technologies available today have enhanced the ability of the laboratory to provide timely, efficient and accurate results.
ISSN:1198-2241
1916-7245
DOI:10.1155/1999/719832