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Active tuberculosis detection by pouched rats in 2014: More than 2,000 new patients found in two countries
Author(s) -
Poling Alan,
Valverde Emilio,
Beyene Negussie,
Mulder Christiaan,
Cox Christophe,
Mgode Georgies,
Edwards Timothy L.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of applied behavior analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1938-3703
pISSN - 0021-8855
DOI - 10.1002/jaba.356
Subject(s) - sputum , tuberculosis , tanzania , mycobacterium tuberculosis , active tuberculosis , medicine , pathology , geography , environmental planning
Tuberculosis ( TB ) is a major problem in poor countries because sensitive diagnostic tools are unavailable. In 2014, our pouched rats evaluated sputum from 21,600 Tanzanians and 9,048 Mozambicans whose sputum had previously been evaluated by microscopy, the standard diagnostic for TB . Evaluation by the rats revealed 1,412 new patients with active TB in Tanzania and 645 new patients in Mozambique, increases of 39% and 53%, respectively, when compared to detections by microscopy alone. These results provide further support for the applied use of scent‐detecting rats.