Demographic Characteristics and Clinical– Radiological Profiles in Molecular Detection of Pulmonary Tuberculosis

Kalpesh Khutade; Sandip Wagh; Harshada Shah; Ronit Kumar

Kalpesh Khutade Department of Biological Sciences, Sandip University, Nashik, India
Sandip Wagh Department of Biological Sciences, Sandip University, Nashik, India
Harshada Shah 3Department of Microbiology, Vedantaa Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Dhundalwadi, Dahanu, Palghar, Maharashtra, India
Ronit Kumar Department of Respiratory Medicine, Vedantaa Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Dhundalwadi, Dahanu, Palghar, Maharashtra, India

Keywords: Bacterial load, chest radiography, co-infection, TrueNat

Abstract

Aim: This study evaluated PTB demographics, clinical/radiographic features, and the diagnostic accuracy of chip-based PCR techniques in suspects.

Methods: This cross-sectional WHO-aligned PTB study collected patient data, standardized chest X-rays, and evaluated sputum micro real-time PCR to their reference standard Middlebrook 7H9 culture.

Results: PTB burden was highest in men aged 51 to 60 with moderate to- high incomes, with heavy smoking as the main risk factor. Higher bacterial loads correlated with worse clinical severity, and reticulonodular opacities were the most common radiological finding (41.1%; p less than 0.0001). Bacterial (40.1%) and fungal (36.7%) co-infections were more frequent than diabetes or HIV (p less than 0.001). TrueNat showed the highest diagnostic accuracy (98.2%), whereas chest radiography was significantly less accurate.

Conclusion: PTB risk was driven by demographics and behavior, while TrueNat far outperformed radiology in diagnostic accuracy.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0019.5138.202653

How to cite this article:
Khutade K, Wagh S, Shah H, Kumar R. Demo graphic Characteristics and Clinical–Radiological Profiles in Molecular Detection of Pulmonary Tuberculosis. J Commun Dis. 2026;58(3):33-42.

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