Поступила в редакцию 08.12.2025
Принята к публикации 21.01.2026
Опубликована 20.03.2026
УДК: 616-056.7-073:579.873.2
DOI: 10.26212/2227-1937.2026.58.42.002
COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF XPERT MTB/RIF ULTRA FOR TUBERCULOSIS DIAGNOSIS AND DETERMINATION OF RIFAMPICIN RESISTANCE
Takenov N.K., Abekeyeva Sh.Sh., Baduova Zh.O., Baltabayev M.M.
National Scientific Center of Phthisiopulmonology of the Republic of Kazakhstan,
Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan
Introduction. Tuberculosis remains a major public health problem, particularly due to the increasing burden of drugresistant disease. The introduction of molecular diagnostic methods such as Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra has significantly shortened the time needed to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis and determine rifampicin resistance.
Objective. To describe and evaluate the performance of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra in respiratory specimens (sputum and bronchoalveolar lavage) for the diagnosis of tuberculosis and rifampicin resistance.
Materials and methods. The study included all respiratory specimens tested with Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra in 2024 at the National Scientific Center of Phthisiopulmonology in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Microscopy and culture results were additionally collected. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the method were analyzed.
Results. A total of 1,938 respiratory specimens were tested with Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra, including 1,355 sputum samples and 583 bronchoalveolar lavage samples. After exclusion of 121 invalid results, 1,817 valid results were included in the final analysis. For sputum, Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra demonstrated high sensitivity (91.6%) and specificity (85.5%), substantially outperforming smear microscopy in sensitivity. For bronchoalveolar lavage, sensitivity and specificity were 84.0% and 77.3%, respectively. The assay also confirmed good performance in detecting rifampicin
resistance.
Conclusion. The findings confirm that Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra is an important tool for early tuberculosis diagnosis and monitoring the spread of drug-resistant strains in Kazakhstan. The assay has high diagnostic value, including in patients with negative smear microscopy results.
Keywords: tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra, molecular diagnostics, drug resistance, Kazakhstan
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