Scientists developed a breath test than can determine if someone has a strain of Tuberculosis bacteria or if he is resistant to a certain type of antibiotic. They have found out those bacteria release volatile organic compounds that are released in the breath.
Researchers from the University of Vermont in the United States published their findings in the Journal of Breath Research. Based from previous work, their study entails determining traces of nitrogen gas emitted by the bacteria in Tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Tuberculosis is an ancient disease as they found traces of it in mummified mummies. In fact, it is still an undefeated disease because of the influx of cases since the 1980s. It is characterized by an infection of the lungs that can be transmitted from one person to another. By 2012, 1.3 million people were believed to have died because of Tuberculosis and approximately 8.6 million gets the infection each year.
The current diagnosis is lengthy and arduous as sample is taken from the sputum, a colony will be grown in the laboratory and several tests were done to be able to determine traces of the bacteria in the lungs.
Furthermore, it can determine the type of antibiotic the bacteria is resistant to. In the study, they infected two mice with bacteria common in lung infections like Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus, and tested their breath after 24 hours. They then tested the breath of uninfected mice too.
They then analyzed the results and found out that there are significant differences on the result from infected and uninfected mice. The team is collaborating so they can come up with a potent test for tuberculosis.
This study is a breakthrough in modern science as they are now developing faster diagnostic tests to determine disease. Thus, it can imply faster results and treatments.