Decision analysis model comparing Xpert MTB/RIF and smear diagnostic strategies guiding respiratory isolation decisions.

<p>Definition of abbreviations: DS-TB = drug-sensitive TB. MDR-TB = multi-drug resistant TB. PTB = pulmonary TB. TB = tuberculosis. Legend: The large square represents a decision node, each circle a probabilistic node; and each triangle a terminal node. The two insets display the detailed distal branches leading to the terminal nodes for the two strategies being compared in the master tree. Applying the inputs in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0079669#pone-0079669-t001" target="_blank">Tables 1</a> and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0079669#pone-0079669-t002" target="_blank">2</a>, we used this decision analysis to generate the outcome data on economic and utilization costs presented in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0079669#pone-0079669-t003" target="_blank">Tables 3</a> and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0079669#pone-0079669-t004" target="_blank">4</a>. Note that for the Xpert strategy, the diagnostic performance of Xpert was estimated using the smear-positive sensitivity and specificity data for pluri-bacillary sputa and using the smear-negative sensitivity and specificity data for pauci-bacillary sputa. <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0079669#pone.0079669-Steingart1" target="_blank">[19]</a>.