Sensitivity of Spontaneous Sputum and Induced Sputum in Molecular Rapid Test (TCM) Examination in Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients

Abstract

Pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis and remains a significant global health issue, with a high incidence rate in Indonesia. Early detection of TB is crucial to prevent its spread and improve treatment success rates. The Rapid Molecular Test (TCM) based on GeneXpert has become an effective diagnostic method for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA, including rifampicin resistance. This study aims to compare the sensitivity of spontaneous sputum and induced sputum in TCM testing for pulmonary TB patients Based on a literature review, spontaneous sputum showed a higher positive ratio (73%) than induced sputum (60%). However, there was no significant difference in effectiveness between the two methods. The study also found that sputum quality, such as mucopurulent consistency, affects the accuracy of TCM results. Additionally, induced sputum proved to be more effective in detecting TB in children compared to spontaneous sputum. Therefore, the choice of sputum collection method should be tailored to the patient's condition to enhance the sensitivity and specificity of TB diagnosis.