Early Evaluation of an Ultra-Portable X-ray System for Tuberculosis Active Case Finding

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease

Van Van Nguyen¹  Thuy Thi Thu Dong²  Rachel Forse²  Andrew Codlin²  Luan Nguyen Quang Vo²  Thuc Doan Ngo³  Ngan Thi Tran³  Giang Hoai Nguyen³  Thang Phuoc Dao³  Huong Thi Lan Mo³  Cong Van Cung⁴  Hoa Binh Nguyen⁴  Nhung Viet Nguyen⁴  Thao Thanh Nguyen⁵  Zhi Zhen Qin⁶  Jacob Creswell⁶ 

[1] Department of Health Quang Nam, Tam Kỳ 560000, Vietnam;Friends for International TB Relief, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam;IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam;National Lung Hospital, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam;Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital Quang Nam, Tam Kỳ 560000, Vietnam;Stop TB Partnership, 1218 Geneva, Switzerland;

关键词: tuberculosis;    active case finding;    X-ray;    ultra-portable;    handheld;    vulnerable populations;   

DOI  :  10.3390/tropicalmed6030163

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

X-ray screening is an important tool in tuberculosis (TB) prevention and care, but access has historically been restricted by its immobile nature. As recent advancements have improved the portability of modern X-ray systems, this study represents an early evaluation of the safety, image quality and yield of using an ultra-portable X-ray system for active case finding (ACF). We reported operational and radiological performance characteristics and compared image quality between the ultra-portable and two reference systems. Image quality was rated by three human readers and by an artificial intelligence (AI) software. We deployed the ultra-portable X-ray alongside the reference system for community-based ACF and described TB care cascades for each system. The ultra-portable system operated within advertised specifications and radiologic tolerances, except on X-ray capture capacity, which was 58% lower than the reported maximum of 100 exposures per charge. The mean image quality rating from radiologists for the ultra-portable system was significantly lower than the reference (3.71 vs. 3.99, p < 0.001). However, we detected no significant differences in TB abnormality scores using the AI software (p = 0.571), nor in any of the steps along the TB care cascade during our ACF campaign. Despite some shortcomings, ultra-portable X-ray systems have significant potential to improve case detection and equitable access to high-quality TB care.

【 授权许可】

Unknown