ScreenTB: a tool for prioritising risk groups and selecting algorithms for screening for active tuberculosis

SETTING AND OBJECTIVES: There is an urgent need to improve tuberculosis (TB) case detection globally. This would require greater focus on the implementation of TB screening programs. However, to be productive, cost-effective, and ethical, TB screening efforts should be tailored to their local context, targeted to the populations most likely to benefit and utilizing diagnostic tools with sufficient accuracy.

DESIGN AND RESULTS: We have developed an online tool, ScreenTB to help National TB Programmes (NTPs) and their partners plan TB screening activities by modeling the potential outcomes of screening programs, including yield of TB cases diagnosed (trueand false-positives), costs, and cost-effectiveness, specific to the populations screened and the diagnostic algorithms used. In Myanmar, ScreenTB was used to assist the NTP in prioritizing risk groups for screening efforts and selecting appropriate screening algorithms to maximize case detection and minimize false-positive diagnoses.

CONCLUSION: The ScreenTB tool can help facilitate the prioritization of risk groups for screening and the selection of appropriate screening algorithms. This is useful when used as part of a larger planning process that considers feasibility of screening, vulnerability of risk groups, potential impact of screening on TB transmission, human rights implications of screening and equity in health care access.