Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The United States. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (US-CDC) has said that Nigeria is witnessing significant progress in the screening, detection and treatment of TB among the people living with HIV across the country.

The Centre said that of the 467,000 new TB cases reported in Nigeria in 2023, approximately 140,000 were among people living with HIV.

A Senior Programme Specialist at the US-CDC in Nigeria, Dr. Flora Nwagagbo, in her presentation at a Media Roundtable in Abuja titled: “Expanding the use of portable X-ray machines to improve tuberculosis diagnosis among PLHIV in Nigeria” said that Nigeria is currently making significant progress in screening for TB in people living with HIV across the country

She said the US-CDC is supporting the federal government in expanding the use of AI-enabled Portable Digital X-ray machines for the early detection of Tuberculosis, especially among people living with HIV.

She the intervention is helping Nigeria to expand the use of portable x-ray machines with artificial intelligence (AI) to improve screening for TB in people living with HIV.

“Systematic screening is an essential first step in TB diagnosis and treatment in eligible populations.

“For instance, in the area of early detection of TB and the start of treatment, the equipment can improve health outcomes and prevent severe complications and death,” she said.

According to Nwagagbo, screening is being carried out on people who are at higher risk of TB.

She added that screening may be conducted using portable chest X-ray with artificial intelligence (AI), or a recommended molecular rapid diagnostic tests, either alone or in combination.

“PDX machines are an effective tool for screening for TB, even when people do not show symptoms and can help diagnose TB in people living with HIV who face a unique diagnostic challenge with traditional TB tests because they may not have typical immune responses to the TB bacteria, making it harder to detect and diagnose,” she explained.

“AI-enabled x-ray for TB screening can supplement decision-making, potentially improving on human reader performance Increase the usability of chest X-rays for screening where there is a scarcity of trained human readers or no human readers.

“It can reduce reader variability and produces consistent results, thus saving time and resources needed for resolution when conflicting interpretations are provided”.

The Team Lead of the Programme Management Unit at the National Tuberculosis, Leprosy, and Buruli Ulcer Control Programme, Dr. Emperor Ubochioma, commended the CDC, the U.S. government, implementing partners, and the media for their support in Nigeria’s fight against TB and HIV.

Ubochioma, represented by the Programme Manager for TB at the NTBLCP, Dr. Shadrach Dimang, spoke of the importance of awareness and media involvement in dispelling myths and misinformation surrounding TB and HIV.

He said that breaking the cycle of transmission is key to addressing infectious diseases, adding that early diagnosis and treatment are most critical in dealing with diseases.

“The AI-aided PDX machines help to improve TB early detection in Nigeria, with their efficiency, objectivity, and ability to reduce human error in diagnosis, especially for difficult cases like those involving immunocompromised patients or children,” Ubochioma stated.

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