A GP guide to tuberculosis
The disease is often under-recognised in low-prevalence countries such as Australia
Need to know:
Tuberculosis, caused by infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is a significant health challenge globally.
Although up to 25% of the world’s population will be infected with M. tuberculosis in their lifetime, the disease is often under-recognised in low-prevalence countries such as Australia.1
Newer diagnostic modalities, such as interferon gamma release assays (IGRAs) and nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs), such as GeneXpert, have increased the speed and accuracy of diagnosis.
