Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a pathogen of great clinical importance to health. This bacterium mainly causes pulmonary disease but can spread and affect any organ, generating either an acute, chronic, or latent infection.

Approximately one-third of the world’s population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Despite being a curable disease, tuberculosis causes the death of approximately 1.5 million people worldwide each year.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis can cause asymptomatic latent tuberculosis infection. Between 5% and 15% of patients with latent tuberculosis will reactivate over the course of their lifetime, progressing to active tuberculosis disease and potentially transmitting this pathogen to the community.

It is recommended to perform a blood test to detect a tuberculosis marker (Interferon Gamma) if your medical history, working conditions, or lifestyle put you at risk of exposure.

Risk factors:

• Close contact with a person infected with tuberculosis.

• Living in or traveling to regions of the world where tuberculosis is endemic.

• Working or living in environments such as a healthcare facility, nursing home, homeless shelter, or correctional facility.

• Having health conditions such as diabetes, prior organ transplant, intravenous drug use, or HIV/AIDS.

An automated test is the best alternative for the presumptive diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection. Laboratorio Dorado offers the VIDAS® TB-IGRA test from the company Biomerieux for its detection, through an Interferon Gamma Release Assay known as TB-IGRA. Using cutting-edge technology, this test employs the VIDAS® 3 platform, which delivers accurate and rapid results in the diagnosis and monitoring of tuberculosis infection, contributing significantly to the early detection and control of this endemic bacterial disease in our community.