{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,27]],"date-time":"2026-04-27T19:38:05Z","timestamp":1777318685289,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"Oxford University Press (OUP)","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2016,5,1]],"date-time":"2016-05-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1462060800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/pages\/standard-publication-reuse-rights"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2016,5,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Rationale<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Despite reports of unreliability, the QuantiFERON-TB interferon-\u03b3 release assay is increasingly used for the annual screening of individuals at risk for latent tuberculosis. Continued use of the QuantiFERON-TB assay suggests the need for more definitive evidence of its reproducibility and accuracy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>To examine reproducibility and the accumulation of false-positive test results when the QuantiFERON-TB is repeated annually and to examine the validity of confirming positive test results with the performance of a second QuantiFERON-TB.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>We performed a retrospective, longitudinal evaluation of results from serial screening of a cohort of emergency responders from 2001 to 2013.<\/jats:p>\n                    <jats:p>Measurements and Main Results: Results of tuberculin tests and QuantiFERON-TB tests performed annually as part of a mandated first responder examination were retroactively reviewed. In this population, positive results occurred in new individuals each year. QuantiFERON-TB results were positive in 80 of 557 tuberculin test\u2013negative individuals examined annually for a maximum of 7 years. Only 10 individuals with initially positive results remained positive when the test was repeated the next year, and 9 of these 10 were QuantiFERON-TB\u2013negative within 3 years. The number of individuals with a positive result increased annually, and, after 7 years, 32 (27.4%) of 117 people had a positive result.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>When viewed in the context of the extensive literature documenting unreliable QuantiFERON-TB test performance, our findings of frequent, cumulative, sporadic, and irreproducible positive results support discontinuing the use of the QuantiFERON-TB assay for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis in low-risk populations.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1513\/annalsats.201508-532oc","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2016,1,19]],"date-time":"2016-01-19T16:19:33Z","timestamp":1453220373000},"page":"660-665","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":24,"title":["Cumulative False-Positive QuantiFERON-TB Interferon-\u03b3 Release Assay Results"],"prefix":"10.1093","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Thomas E.","family":"Gamsky","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Contra Costa County Employee Occupational Medicine Clinic, Department of Health Services, Division of Public Health, Martinez, California"},{"name":"Veterans Affairs Northern California Health Care System, Martinez, California"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Thomas","family":"Lum","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"East Bay Institute for Research and Education, Rancho Cordova, California"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Melody","family":"Hung-Fan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Contra Costa County Public Health Laboratory, Department of Health Services, Martinez, California; and"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jon A.","family":"Green","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Veterans Affairs Northern California Health 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