Sputum collection centres collect, package and then transport samples to nearby TB diagnostic centres/ Designated Microscopy Centre (DMC).
Sputum is collected and packaged utilizing the triple-layer packing as per National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) Guidelines.
Resources
Pulmonary TB(PTB) is primarily involves lungs. Screening should be done for the following symptoms:
Figure: Signs and Symptoms of active TB
Regular screening of Presumptive TB cases with unexplained cough of any duration should be done and checked for:
Active TB disease has 4 major symptoms (the 4 Symptom complex). Presence of any one of these symptoms without any other reason warrants evaluation for TB. These are:
Figure: Signs and Symptoms of TB
Presumptive TB case refers to a patient who presents with symptoms or signs suggestive of TB disease (previously known as a TB suspect) and where further diagnostic workup including bacteriological investigation is required.
Presumptive TB can be categorized into
Presumptive Pulmonary TB (P TB) - Symptoms are directly related to lungs (Cough, hemoptysis)
Presumptive Extra Pulmonary TB (EP TB) - Symptoms/ signs are specific to an extra pulmonary site (example: Lymph node swelling)
Nikshay is an Integrated ICT system for TB patient management and care in India. Nikshay was launched in 2012 and since then, various improvements have been made in the system.
Nikshay provides-
National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP) strives for all presumptive TB patients to be microbiologically confirmed. Under NTEP, the acceptable methods for microbiological diagnosis of TB are:
Screening for active tuberculosis (TB) a process to filter out people who are less likely to have TB, from a group. Screened positive people are likely to have TB and are confirmed subsequently using a TB diagnostic test. This will allow finite diagnostic testing resources to be used on the remaining.
TB Infection (or previously known as Latent TB infection) is a stage in between uninfected and having active TB. In this stage the person has no symptoms and can only be identified using laboratory tests.
The vast majority of infected people may never develop TB disease. However, to achieve TB elimination, it is important to treat TB infection in people at risk of developing active TB disease.
Nikshay being the final updated repository of information of TB patient services, different roles perform various actions on the patient and TB service information in Nikshay and keep it updated. These roles range from health volunteers and treatment supporters on the field to health providers and doctors at health facilities. Each role acts on or inputs information based on the services he/she provides. The information is required to updated when it is generated by the person generating it (eg by the CBNAAT LT once the results of a CBNAAT test is available).
