Latin mother with young girl, Pediatric TB diagnosis and management

TB Management

Pediatrics

Tuberculosis prevention in children

Children can get infected with tuberculosis (TB) bacteria (M. tuberculosis) and not have active disease. However, once infected, children with vulnerable immune systems, such as the very young, HIV-infected or severely malnourished, are most at risk of progressing to active TB disease.

Even though TB is a preventable and curable disease, it continues to impact the lives and development of children in the US and throughout the world.

Children represent about 11% of all people with TB globally, with over 1.1 million children falling ill with it every year (1). In 2020, 317 cases of TB among children were reported in the US, which accounts for 4% of all cases reported (2).

Can we protect children from TB?

Yes – latent TB infection (LTBI) testing and treatment can ensure TB disease prevention after exposure to the TB bacteria. Watch a webinar below with pediatric TB experts to understand how testing and treating pediatric LTBI can help prevent development of TB disease in children.

An infographic titled Burden of childhood TB, showing 11% of all TB cases globally on the left and 4% of all TB cases in the US on the right

Podcast: Latest insights into pediatric tuberculosis

Join Dr. Danilo Buonsenso for a discussion of the latest developments in TB diagnostics. Dr. Buonsenso is a pediatrician at the Department of Woman and Child Health and Public Health at the Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, and this podcast is presented by the European Medical Journal.

Male boy with mask talking to a doctor, Pediatrics

Part 1: Why screen at-risk children for TB?

Part 2: What testing options are available?

Part 3: Why choose QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus?

Current US guidelines and QFT-Plus testing for children

Ending TB in children means ending TB in adults. Join Dr. Masae Kawamura to understand why children need to be screened for latent TB. In this webinar, Dr. Kawamura details testing recommendations from the AAP and describes how modern TB blood tests, like QFT-Plus, can improve the effectiveness and efficiency of latent TB diagnosis in children.

Expert panel: Practical management of childhood TB

Ready to learn more? Join Dr. Danilo Buonsenso and pediatric TB expert Dr. Ann Loeffler (Pediatric TB Consultant Curry International Tuberculosis Center) as they discuss the role of LTBI testing in clinical and diagnostic TB management of children. They also present international recommendations and LTBI tests performances in the context of LTBI diagnosis.

Go to the webinar

Helping create a TB-smart generation

To combat the national TB issue, we're concentrating on local solutions, particularly in Alaska, which has the country's highest TB rate at 13.1 cases per 100,000 people. Collaborating with the Alaska Department of Health, our initiative engages kids through an elementary school campaign, using interactive methods to create a TB-smart generation.

Read the full story

Choose a TB test you can trust for children

In their most recent 2021 Red Book® guidelines, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) preferentially recommends the use of TB blood tests (IGRAs) in BCG-vaccinated children aged 2 years and older (3).

QFT-Plus is an accurate, convenient and cost-effective IGRA to screen children for TB infection.

Single patient visit
Unaffected by prior BCG vaccination
Innovative CD8 T cell technology

Reduce the risk of active TB among children with QFT-Plus

QFT-Plus is the modern alternative to the tuberculin skin test.

Find out more

References:

1. WHO. (2021) WHO consolidated guidelines on tuberculosis. Module 5: Management of tuberculosis in children and adolescents.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. TB in Children in the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/tb/topic/populations/tbinchildren (accessed March 31, 2022)
3. American Academy of Pediatrics. Red Book® 2021–2024 Report of the committee on infectious disease.

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