Enhancing Diagnosis of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis: Evaluating the Cost-Effectiveness of Rapid Molecular and Phenotypic Testing in South Africa

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Drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) poses a significant global health threat, with 400,000 cases reported in 2023 and only 40% diagnosed.
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In South Africa, 13,000 MDR/RR-TB cases were reported in 2023, but only 6,799 were laboratory-confirmed, highlighting diagnostic gaps.
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Rapid molecular testing is underutilized in South Africa, with only 47% of new TB cases receiving WHO-recommended testing in 2023.
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The study evaluates the cost-effectiveness of rapid molecular assays combined with phenotypic testing for DR-TB diagnosis.
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Advancements in nucleic acid amplification tests have improved DR-TB diagnosis speed, but cost-effectiveness in high-burden settings remains underexplored.

Bmc Medicine

by Ginenus Fekadu, Tadesse Tolossa, Lan Gao, Habteyes Hailu Tola, Tesfaye Regassa Feyissa, Lianping Yang, Shanquan Chen, Nathorn Chaiyakunapruk, Elias Asfaw, Martin Siegel, Wai Kit Ming
February 9, 2026

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