| Autor: |
Vo LNQ; Friends for International TB Relief, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Codlin A; Friends for International TB Relief, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Ngo TD; IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam., Dao TP; IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam., Dong TTT; Friends for International TB Relief, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Mo HTL; IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam., Forse R; Friends for International TB Relief, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Nguyen TT; Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital Quang Nam, Tam Kỳ 560000, Vietnam., Cung CV; National Lung Hospital, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Nguyen HB; National Lung Hospital, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Nguyen NV; National Lung Hospital, Ha Noi 100000, Vietnam., Nguyen VV; Department of Health Quang Nam, Tam Kỳ 560000, Vietnam., Tran NT; IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam., Nguyen GH; IRD VN, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam., Qin ZZ; Stop TB Partnership, 1218 Geneva, Switzerland., Creswell J; Stop TB Partnership, 1218 Geneva, Switzerland. |
| Abstrakt: |
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. |
