Programmatic Impact of Implementing GeneXpert MTB/ RIF Assay for the Detection of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis in Respiratory Specimens from Pulmonary Tuberculosis Suspected Patients in Resource Limited Laboratory Settings of Eastern Nepal

In Nepal, introduction of GeneXpert MTB/RIF assay (Xpert assay) as an initial confirmation test for tuberculosis (TB) has been considered to have impact as a significant decrease in number of clinically diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) cases than previous years. This study aims to find out the distribution profile of suspected tuberculosis cases according to patients age, gender, treatment history and HIV status as well as to evaluate the utility of the Xpert assay over conventional acid-fast bacilli (AFB) staining method for the proper diagnosis of M. Tuberculosis in respiratory specimens from the tuberculosis (TB) suspected patient samples