Advanced Integrative Sensing Technologies for Detection of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Point-of-Care Settings

Abstract Tuberculosis (TB) is still considered a deadly disease, ranked 10th in the top 10 list of lethal diseases worldwide. But the drug-resistant form of TB is more fatal and complex. It is evident that such drug-resistant TB should be detected as early as possible so that the doctors can provide accurate and effective treatment to the infected patient, and thus prevent transmission. Many diagnostic methods for different types of drug-resistant TB have been developed, some of which are approved by WHO, while some are not. The following review highlights different methods for the rapid, accurate and sensitive detection of drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) and also discusses the potential of those methods for point-of-care (POC) application.