Performance of REBA MTB-XDR to detect extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis in an intermediate-burden country

Extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) is a serious worldwide problem. The REBA MTB-XDR (REBA-XDR) was recently developed in Korea to detect resistance to ofloxacin, kanamycin, and streptomycin. The aim of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the REBA-XDR. We prospectively enrolled 104 patients with acid-fast bacilli smear-positive specimens between July 2010 and January 2013. Performance characteristics were compared between REBA-XDR and conventional drug-susceptibility testing. The sensitivity values of REBA-XDR for detecting resistance to ofloxacin, kanamycin, and streptomycin were 66.7%, 90.9%, and 60.0%, and the specificity values were 93.3%, 93.5%, and 85.4%, respectively. The positive predictive values were 62.5%, 62.5%, and 40.9%, and the negative predictive values were 94.3%, 98.9%, and 92.7%, respectively. Accuracy was 89.4%, 93.3%, and 81.7%, respectively. REBA-XDR seems to be a useful kit for “ruling in” XDR-TB in intermediate-burden countries, and especially useful for detecting kanamycin resistance.