Performance of smear-microscopy using Ziehl Neelsen and LED-fluorescence microscopy using two smear-positive case definitions.

<p>ZN: Ziehl Neelsen, LED-FM: Light Emitting Diode Fluorescence Microscopy.</p

Smear microscopy results and smear microscopic appearance per microscopy methods.

<p>NA  =  non applicable.</p>1<p>1 length = 100 HPF 1000× magnification (ZN) and 200 HPF under 400× magnification (FM).</p>2<p>3 slides broken.</p><p>ZN: Ziehl Neelsen; LED-FM: light-emitting diode fluorescence microscopy.</p

Study profile.

<p>Study profile.</p

Study profile.

<p>ICF: Informed Consent Form, ZN: Ziehl Neelsen, LED-FM: Light Emitting Diode Fluorescence Microscopy; MTB: <i>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</i>; MOTT: Mycobacterium Other Than Tuberculosis.</p

Patients' characteristics.

<p>Patients' characteristics.</p

Results of smear reading using LED-FM and conventional FM (N = 332).

<p>LED-FM: Light Emitting Diodes Fluorescence microscopy.</p

Performance of the LED-FM after NaOCl sedimentation using a case definition of one positive smear out of two collected specimens and different AFB cut-offs to define a positive smear.

<p>Performance of the LED-FM after NaOCl sedimentation using a case definition of one positive smear out of two collected specimens and different AFB cut-offs to define a positive smear.</p

Clinical-radiological algorithm ROC curves.

<p>ROC curve for the clinical-radiological smear-negative diagnostic algorithm without culture in the prospective study (A) and in the retrospective analysis of program data (B).</p

Patients' characteristics of the smear-negative PTB suspects included in the prospective study.

a<p>. BMI: body mass index.</p>b<p>. Malnourished: BMI<18.5.</p

Culture results of smear-negative PTB suspects, prospective study.

a<p>. In 2 patients LJ was negative and TLA was not performed.</p