This new study in Lancet ID validates a new urine LAM assay for TB. In comparison to AlereLAM, FujiLAM appears to offer superior diagnostic sensitivity, while maintaining specificity, and could transform rapid point-of-care tuberculosis diagnosis for hospital inpatients with HIV.
URL: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(19)30001-5/fulltext
Thanks Madhu! This is great news and a really exciting finding. It will be of great value to have a more sensitive, urine-based rapid test for finding TB in PLHIV. My understanding is it’s still some time before the FujiLAM test will be ready for commercialization + WHO recommendation + field use, and till we know how affordable it will be.
As such, we’re continuing to encourage all settings with high TB/HIV burdens to take up the Alere/ now Abbott LAM test, which, despite its less than optimal sensitivity has shown tremendous impacts on finding more cases and saving lives, especially in people with advanced HIV and PLHIV presenting to hospitals, and is very inexpensive (USD $3.5) and quick (25 min). We recently put out briefs on LAM testing here: http://www.treatmentactiongroup.org/content/tb-lam-testing-briefs-2019
Thanks Madhu. Very exciting and leading the way for even better tests. There is a nice editorial to go with this paper.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(19)30053-2/fulltext?rss=yes [A new point-of-care test to diagnose tuberculosis]