Drug-induced lymphocyte stimulation test in the prediction of drug-induced hypersensitivity to antituberculosis drugs

•Drug-induced lymphocyte stimulation test (DLST) and drug provocation test (DPT) were compared in detecting adverse drug reactions (ADRs) in TB patients.•Four anti-TB drugs were tested: isoniazid, rifampicin, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide.•DLST has high specificity and limited sensitivity in the diagnosis of anti-TB drug-induced ADRs.

Antituberculosis (TB) chemotherapeutic drugs may cause a variety of adverse drug reactions (ADRs). To assess the potential of drug-induced lymphocyte stimulation test (DLST) in screening ADRs in patients treated with anti-TB drugs, we performed DLST in 272 TB patients (176 cases with ADRs and 96 controls without ADRs) treated with anti-TB drugs isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RFP), ethambutol (EMB), and pyrazinamide (PZA). The ADRs were diagnosed by drug provocation test based on clinical and laboratory examinations. The sensitivities of DLST in the diagnosis of INH-, RFP-, EMB-, or PZA-induced ADRs were 57.8%, 37.1%, 42.4%, and 23.1%, respectively, with the corresponding specificities being 93.4%, 94.0%, 97.5%, and 98.8%. DLST has high specificity and limited sensitivity in the diagnosis of anti-TB drug-induced ADRs. In combination with clinical observation and drug use history, DLST could have a predictive validity of ADRs, especially when a positive result is obtained.