Editorial: Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Clinical Medicine and the 2020 CONSORT-AI Study Guidelines.

Artificial intelligence (AI) in clinical medicine includes physical robotics and devices and virtual AI and machine learning. Concerns have been raised regarding ethical issues for the use of AI in surgery, including guidance for surgical decisions, patient confidentiality, and the need for support from controlled clinical trials to use these methods so that clinical guidelines can be developed. The most common applications for virtual AI include disease diagnosis, health monitoring and digital patient consultations, clinical training, patient data management, drug development, and personalized medicine. In September 2020, the CONSORT-A1 extension was developed with 14 additional items that should be reported for AI studies that include clear descriptions of the AI intervention, skills required, study setting, inputs and outputs of the AI intervention, analysis of errors, and the human and AI interactions. This Editorial aims to present current applications and challenges of AI in clinical medicine and the importance of the new 2020 CONSORT-AI study guidelines.

Primera experiencia en Uruguay en enseñanza curricular de resucitación cardíaca avanzada en el Ciclo Internado Rotatorio en el período 2017-2018, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República. Comunicación y evaluación / Inclusion of advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation in curricular education of medical doctors in Uruguay. First experience in the Rotating Internship between 2017-2018. School of Medicine, University of Uruguay. Communication and Evaluation / Primeira experiência no Uruguai no ensino curricular de Reanimação Cardíaca Avançada no Ciclo de Estágios Rotatórios no período 2017-2018, Faculdade de Medicina, UdelaR. Comunicação e avaliação

Resumen: A partir del año 2017, la Facultad de Medicina de la Universidad de la República (UdelaR) incorpora la enseñanza en reanimación cardíaca avanzada como actividad curricular obligatoria durante el Ciclo Internado Rotatorio (CIR). Esto se justifica dada la relevancia que presenta en términos de morbilidad y mortalidad la patología cardiovascular, en particular los paros cardiorrespiratorios y específicamente la muerte súbita. Los cursos de reanimación permiten la adquisición de habilidades técnicas y no técnicas para dar respuesta tanto a esta patología tan prevalente como a la falta de estos cursos en la formación médica. Los objetivos del trabajo son comunicar y evaluar la primera experiencia durante el CIR 2017-2018. Para dichos objetivos se realizó un estudio transversal donde se analizaron los números de participantes y el porcentaje de aprobados. Además, se realizó una encuesta de valoración de autopercepción de habilidades previas y posteriores al curso y una evaluación de conformidad con éste. De los resultados se desprende la amplia aprobación en una primera instancia del curso y la valoración positiva que se realiza. También es positiva la mejora en la autopercepción de habilidades identificadas por los internos. Como debilidad se desprende el uso de un cuestionario no validado y que la evaluación no fue completada por todos los internos, ambos aspectos a mejorar en futuras evaluaciones. Como conclusión, se logró comunicar la experiencia, los cursos de Resucitación cardíaca avanzda (RCA) son una fortaleza en sí mismos y han sido un avance significativo en la formación profesional del futuro médico.

Summary: In 2017 the School of Medicine of the University of the Republic included advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation as a mandatory curricular activity during the rotating internship. The decision is justified by morbility and mortality rates of heart disease, in particular cardiopulmonary arrests and sudden death. Resuscitation courses enable the acquisition of technical and non- technical skills to respond to a prevalent condition and to compensate the absence of this specific training in the training of medical doctors. The study aimed to communicate and evaluate the first experience during the 2017-2018 rotating internship. A transversal study was conducted to analyse the number of participants and the percentage of successful candidates. Likewise, a survey was designed to assess self-perception of skills prior to the course and skills acquired during the course, as well as a course satisfaction. Results revealed the high acceptance rate of this first instance of the course and its positive assessment. Similarly, interns evidenced improvement in their self-perception of identified skills. As to a weaknesses found, the questionnaire used had not been validated and not all Interns completed the assessment, both aspects that will be improved in future assessments. To conclude, we managed to inform about the experience, advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation courses are an advantage in itself, and it has been a significant advance in the professional training of future medical doctors.

Resumo: A partir de 2017, a Faculdade de Medicina da Universidad de la República (UdelaR) incorporou o ensino de ressuscitação cardíaca avançada como atividade curricular obrigatória durante o ciclo de estágio rotativo (CIR). Isso se justifica dada a relevância das doenças cardiovasculares em termos de morbimortalidade, em especial a parada cardiorrespiratória e especificamente a morte súbita. Os cursos de reanimação permitem a aquisição de competências técnicas e não técnicas para responder, tanto a esta patologia prevalente, como à falta destes cursos na formação médica. Os objetivos deste trabalho são comunicar e avaliar a primeira experiência durante o Ciclo de Estágios Rotativo 2017-2018. Com esse fim foi realizado um estudo transversal onde foram analisados o número de participantes e o percentual de aprovação. Além disso, foi realizada uma pesquisa para avaliar a autopercepção de habilidades antes e depois do curso, bem como uma avaliação da adesão ao curso. Os resultados mostram a ampla aprovação na primeira instância do curso e a avaliação positiva que se faz do mesmo. A melhora na autopercepção das habilidades identificadas pelos estagiários também é positiva. Como fragilidade, surge a utilização de um questionário não validado e que a avaliação não foi respondida por todos os internos, aspectos que devem ser melhorados em avaliações futuras. Como conclusão foi possível comunicar a experiência, os cursos RCA são uma força em si e têm sido um avanço significativo na formação profissional do futuro médico.

El método clínico y el carácter científico de la medicina clínica / The clinical method and the scientific character of clinical medicine

Introducción: El cuestionamiento del carácter científico de la medicina clínica se incluye entre los problemas epistemológicos de las ciencias. Objetivo: Revisar la contribución de la medicina clínica como ciencia aplicada, con énfasis en la metódica que le distingue: el método clínico. Métodos: Se revisó la bibliografía especializada, complementada con el empleo de procedimientos de investigación cualitativa que incluyeron: entrevistas a profesionales de reconocida experiencia, trabajo con grupos focales y sesiones en profundidad. Desarrollo: El desarrollo histórico del pensamiento científico tuvo impacto en la medicina clínica, la cientificidad del método clínico explicada desde diferentes enfoques, la respuesta a las críticas del positivismo y la manera en que la medicina clínica cumple con los requerimientos para su aceptación como ciencia aplicada. Conclusiones: Se fundamentó la cientificidad de la medicina clínica desde un enfoque dialéctico distinguida por su carácter interdisciplinar, su condición de ciencia aplicada y por una metódica científica que posibilita el desempeño profesional del médico con el enfermo, el individuo en riesgo de enfermar y el hombre aparentemente sano: el método clínico(AU)

Introduction: The questioning the scientific character of clinical medicine is included among the epistemological problems of science. Objective: To review the contribution of clinical medicine as an applied science, with emphasis on the method that distinguishes it: the clinical method. Methods: The specialized bibliography was reviewed, complemented with the use of qualitative research procedures that included interviews with professionals with proven experience, working with focus groups and in-depth sessions. Findings: The historical development of scientific thought had an impact on clinical medicine, the scientificity of the clinical method explained from different approaches, the response to the criticisms of positivism and the way in which clinical medicine meets the requirements for its acceptance as applied science. Conclusions: The scientificity of clinical medicine was founded from a dialectical approach distinguished by its interdisciplinary nature, its condition of applied science and by a scientific method that enables the professional performance of the physician with the patient, the individual at risk of becoming ill and apparently healthy man: the clinical method(AU)

T Lymphocytes Cash Their Value in Clinical Medicine.

Empowering the ability of cytotoxic T cells to kill tumor cells or the reframing of their receptor to eliminate cancer cells has revolutionized cancer treatment. Simultaneously, the empowering of regulatory subsets has met success in mitigating autoimmune diseases. T cells, the major first responders of the immune system, are produced in the thymus, an organ that serves as their 'training camp'. On their exit to the periphery, T cells are effector cells that control infections or regulatory cells, which limit excessive responses.

Electromagnetic⁻Acoustic Sensing for Biomedical Applications.

This paper reviews the theories and applications of electromagnetic⁻acoustic (EMA) techniques (covering light-induced photoacoustic, microwave-induced thermoacoustic, magnetic-modulated thermoacoustic, and X-ray-induced thermoacoustic) belonging to the more general area of electromagnetic (EM) hybrid techniques. The theories cover excitation of high-power EM field (laser, microwave, magnetic field, and X-ray) and subsequent acoustic wave generation. The applications of EMA methods include structural imaging, blood flowmetry, thermometry, dosimetry for radiation therapy, hemoglobin oxygen saturation (SO2) sensing, fingerprint imaging and sensing, glucose sensing, pH sensing, etc. Several other EM-related acoustic methods, including magnetoacoustic, magnetomotive ultrasound, and magnetomotive photoacoustic are also described. It is believed that EMA has great potential in both pre-clinical research and medical practice.

La comorbilidad y su valor para el médico generalista en Medicina Interna / Comorbidity and its value for the general doctor in Internal Medicine

Introducción: La comorbilidad es un fenómeno que complejiza el cumplimiento de las funciones del médico generalista en la atención a pacientes en salas de medicina interna. Objetivo: Fundamentar las bases de la comorbilidad como variable, en tanto se define en lo conceptual, lo operacional y relaciones esenciales internas y externas con el enfoque en sistema de las funciones del médico clínico en las salas de Medicina Interna de los hospitales. Material y Métodos: Se realizó una revisión bibliográfica que abordasen la comorbilidad y que facilitaran cumplir el objetivo de la investigación. Desarrollo: En el plano conceptual se define la comorbilidad como la asociación de enfermedades donde una tiene carácter protagonista Se presenta la definición conceptual de la comorbilidad. La relación entre enfermedades comórbidas puede estar explicada por asociaciones de clara dependencia patogénica o por coincidencia en el paciente sin relación patogénica directa. Existen numerosos y diversos instrumentos para operacionalizarla disponibles para su aplicación en investigación y la práctica clínica. Conclusiones: Las relaciones entre las diferentes enfermedades son multilaterales y requieren de una interpretación etiopatogénica y fisiopatológica profunda para ser comprendida y analizada en el cumplimiento de las funciones asistenciales, investigativa, docentes y administrativas del médico en salas de Medicina Interna(AU)

Introduction: The comorbidity is a phenomenon that complicates general doctor´s fulfillment of their functions regarding the care of patients at Internal Medicine Wards. Objective: To base the bases of comorbidity as a variable, insofar it is defined in the conceptual, the operational and essential internal-external relationships with a systemic approach of the functions of the clinical physician in the hospital´s Internal Medicine wards. Material and Methods: A bibliographic revision that take into account comorbidity and allow to satisfy the objective was performed. Development: Conceptually, comorbidity is defined as the association of diseases in which one has a leading role character. The conceptual definition of comorbidity is presented. The relationship between comorbid diseases can be explained by associations of a clear pathogenic dependence or by coincidence in the patient without direct pathogenic relationship. There are numerous and diverse instruments available to make it operable for its application in research and clinical practice. Conclusions: The relations between different diseases are multilateral and need a deep etiopathogenic and fisiopathological interpretation to be understood and examined in the fulfillment of its asitencials, investigative, teaching and administrative functions of the doctor at Internal Medicine wards(AU)

[The scientific revolution in medicine of last quarter of XIX - first half of XX centuries: New approaches to diagnostic and treatment of diseases].

The article considers changes in mass physician consciousness approaches to diagnostic and treatment of diseases occurred in the end of XIX-first half of XX centuries. It was the result of gaining a foothold in medicine of new view on organism as a procedural system and concepts of diseases as a complex feedback reaction of this system to unfavorable effect of environmental factors. It is demonstrated that the major change in diagnostic became refusal of traditional for XIX century orientation of diagnostic search exclusively on "clinical prediction of pathological picture" in favor of complex evaluation of state of ill person. The scale transformations in medical business affecting clinic of internal diseases and surgery disciplines resulted in that for the first time symptomatic therapy was replaced by comparatively effective ethiotropic and pathogenic treatment.

Clinician-performed ultrasound in hemodynamic and cardiac assessment: a synopsis of current indications and limitations.

Accurate hemodynamic and intravascular volume status assessment is essential in the diagnostic and therapeutic management of critically ill patients. Over the last two decades, a number of technological advances were translated into a variety of minimally invasive or non-invasive hemodynamic monitoring modalities. Despite the promise of less invasive technologies, the quality, reliability, reproducibility, and generalizability of resultant hemodynamic and intravascular volume status data have been lacking. Since its formal introduction, ultrasound technology has provided the medical community with a more standardized, higher quality, broadly applicable, and reproducible method of accomplishing the above-mentioned objectives. With the advent of portable, hand-carried devices, the importance of sonography in hemodynamic and volume status assessment became clear. From basic venous collapsibility and global cardiac assessment to more complex tasks such as the assessment of cardiac flow and tissue Doppler signals, the number of real-life indications for sonology continues to increase. This review will provide an outline of the essential ultrasound applications in hemodynamic and volume status assessment, focusing on evidence-based uses and indications.

Clinician-performed abdominal sonography.

INTRODUCTION: Point-of-care ultrasonography is increasingly utilized across a wide variety of physician specialties. This imaging modality can be used to evaluate patients rapidly and accurately for a wide variety of pathologic conditions. METHODS: A literature search was performed for articles focused on clinician-performed ultrasonography for the diagnosis of appendicitis, gallbladder disease, small bowel obstruction, intussusception, and several types of renal pathology. The findings of this search were summarized including the imaging techniques utilized in these studies. CONCLUSION: Clinician performed point-of-care sonography is particularly well suited to abdominal applications. Future investigations may further confirm and extend its utility at the bedside.

Correlation between intraoperative surgical diagnosis of complicated acute appendicitis and the pathology report: clinical implications.

BACKGROUND: The post-operative management of appendectomy for acute appendicitis is based primarily on the operative findings. The surgeon describes the severity of the disease, and antibiotic therapy is administered accordingly. The histologic findings are not always considered in the decision about the management and may not be correlated with the clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to investigate the agreement between the surgeon's intra-operative visual description of the appendix and the pathologist's report in a consecutive series of patients with acute appendicitis. Complications were analyzed in relation to the classification. METHODS: A comparative observational study was performed in 69 patients who underwent surgery for acute appendicitis at the same hospital during a one-year period (the entire year of 2011). The surgeon's classification of the severity of appendicitis was compared with the pathologist's report using the kappa coefficient. Patient demographics, surgical techniques, and post-operative complications also were analyzed. RESULTS: Complicated appendicitis (gangrenous or perforated) was considered to be present in 36.2% of patients in the surgeon's classification and 43% of the patients in the histopathologic reports (p=0.033). The kappa coefficient showed only a weak correlation between the surgeons' and pathologists' descriptions (κ=0.25). Significant differences in post-operative complications were found only in the surgeon's classification. CONCLUSION: We found a weak correlation between the surgeon's macroscopic diagnosis and the pathologic findings. However, the differences did not have meaningful clinical implications. Further studies are required to evaluate the clinical meaning of these results.

Medical wikis dedicated to clinical practice: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Wikis may give clinician communities the opportunity to build knowledge relevant to their practice. The only previous study reviewing a set of health-related wikis, without specification of purpose or audience, globally showed a poor reliability. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to review medical wiki websites dedicated to clinical practices. METHODS: We used Google in ten languages, PubMed, Embase, Lilacs, and Web of Science to identify websites. The review included wiki sites, accessible and operating, having a topic relevant for clinical medicine, targeting physicians or medical students. Wikis were described according to their purposes, platform, management, information framework, contributions, content, and activity. Purposes were classified as "encyclopedic" or "non-encyclopedic". The information framework quality was assessed based on the Health On the Net (HONcode) principles for collaborative websites, with additional criteria related to users' transparency and editorial policy. From a sample of five articles per wikis, we assessed the readability using the Flesch test and compared articles according to the wikis' main purpose. Annual editorial activities were estimated using the Google engine. RESULTS: Among 25 wikis included, 11 aimed at building an encyclopedia, five a textbook, three lessons, two oncology protocols, one a single article, and three at reporting clinical cases. Sixteen wikis were specialized with specific themes or disciplines. Fifteen wikis were using MediaWiki software as-is, three were hosted by online wiki farms, and seven were purpose-built. Except for one MediaWiki-based site, only purpose-built platforms managed detailed user disclosures. The owners were ten organizations, six individuals, four private companies, two universities, two scientific societies, and one unknown. Among 21 open communities, 10 required users' credentials to give editing rights. The median information framework quality score was 6 out of 16 (range 0-15). Beyond this score, only one wiki had standardized peer-reviews. Physicians contributed to 22 wikis, medical learners to nine, and lay persons to four. Among 116 sampled articles, those from encyclopedic wikis had more videos, pictures, and external resources, whereas others had more posology details and better readability. The median creation year was 2007 (1997-2011), the median number of content pages was 620.5 (3-98,039), the median of revisions per article was 17.7 (3.6-180.5) and 0.015 of talk pages per article (0-0.42). Five wikis were particularly active, whereas six were declining. Two wikis have been discontinued after the completion of the study. CONCLUSIONS: The 25 medical wikis we studied present various limitations in their format, management, and collaborative features. Professional medical wikis may be improved by using clinical cases, developing more detailed transparency and editorial policies, and involving postgraduate and continuing medical education learners.

Development and validation of a scoring system to identify patients with microscopic colitis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Diarrhea is a common indication for colonoscopy. Biopsies are collected and analyzed from patients with a macroscopically normal colon to exclude microscopic colitis (MC), but the diagnostic yield is low because most patients have functional disease. We developed and validated a diagnostic scoring system to identify patients with MC to reduce the need to collect biopsies from all patients. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study, which analyzed demographic and symptom data from adult patients with chronic diarrhea evaluated by colonoscopy and biopsy at 3 endoscopy centers in Leeds, United Kingdom. To derive the scoring system, we analyzed data from 476 adult patients (mean age, 53.6 years; 63.7% female) examined in 2011. Factors significantly associated with the presence of MC were assigned item scores, and total scores were determined for each patient. To validate the system, we used it to assess data from 460 patients (mean age, 52.9 years; 59.8% female) examined in 2012. The primary aim of the study was to determine the performance of the diagnostic scoring system in identifying patients with MC by using histologic findings as a reference. RESULTS: In the derivation cohort, 85 patients were diagnosed with MC on the basis of histologic analysis. Age ≥50 years, female sex, use of proton pump inhibitors or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, weight loss, and absence of abdominal pain were significantly associated with MC. We created a scoring system for diagnosis of MC, with scores ranging from -8 to +38; scores ≥8 were used to identify the presence of MC. This cutoff value identified patients with MC in the validation cohort (74 patients, 16.1%) with 90.5% sensitivity and 45.3% specificity (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value, 0.76). Because of its ability to exclude MC and therefore avoid the need for routine collection of colonic biopsies, this scoring system reduced the cost of evaluation by >£7000 in the cohort. CONCLUSIONS: We collected data on risk factors for MC to create a scoring system that identifies patients with MC with more than 90% sensitivity. This system can also reduce costs by identifying patients who are unlikely to have MC who do not require biopsy analysis.

A prospective evaluation of the symptom-based screening approach to the management of children who are contacts of tuberculosis cases.

BACKGROUND: Child tuberculosis contact screening and management can enhance case finding and prevent tuberculosis disease. It is universally recommended but rarely implemented in tuberculosis-endemic settings. The World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended symptom-based screening approach could improve implementation but has not been prospectively evaluated. METHODS: We conducted a cohort study of children who were close contacts of pulmonary tuberculosis patients in Indonesia from August 2010 to December 2012. We performed clinical assessment, tuberculin skin test, and chest radiography in all eligible children irrespective of symptoms at baseline. Mycobacterial culture and Xpert MTB/RIF assay were performed on sputum from children with persistent symptoms of suspected tuberculosis. Children were managed according to WHO guidelines and were prospectively followed for 12 months. RESULTS: A total of 269 child contacts of 140 index cases were evaluated. At baseline, 21 (8%) children had tuberculosis diagnosed clinically; an additional 102 (38%) had evidence of infection without disease. Of children with any tuberculosis-related symptoms at baseline, 21% had tuberculosis diagnosed compared with none of the asymptomatic children (P < .001). After 12 months of follow-up, none of the 99 eligible young child contacts (<5 years) who received isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) had developed disease compared with 4 of 149 (2.6%) asymptomatic older children who did not receive IPT. CONCLUSIONS: Symptom-based screening is an effective and simple approach to child tuberculosis contact management that can be implemented at the primary healthcare level.

Validation of the hepatoma arterial embolization prognostic score in European and Asian populations and proposed modification.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but it is a challenge to predict patient survival. The hepatic arterial embolization prognostic (HAP) score has been shown to predict which patients will have shorter survival times and should not undergo TACE. We aimed to validate this scoring system in a prospective study of patients in Europe and Asia. METHODS: We evaluated the prognostic accuracy of the HAP score in estimating overall survival (OS) of 126 patients with HCC who received TACE in the United Kingdom or Italy (training set) from 2001 through 2013. We also analyzed data from 723 patients treated in Korea and Japan (validation set), including 79 with newly diagnosed HCC, who underwent TACE in Korea or Japan from 2004 through 2013. Response to TACE was determined based on computed tomography analysis. OS was calculated from the time of the first TACE until death or the last follow-up evaluation. RESULTS: OS was associated with hypoalbuminemia, α-fetoprotein level greater than 400 ng/mL, and tumor size greater than 7 cm at diagnosis (P < .01), but not a bilirubin level greater than 17 umol/L (P > .05), in both data sets. The lack of association between OS and bilirubin level was confirmed using receiver operating characteristic analysis. We developed a modified version of the HAP score, based on the level of albumin and α-fetoprotein and tumor size, which predicted OS with increased accuracy in the training and validation cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: In a multicenter validation study, we developed a modified version of the HAP that predicts survival of patients with HCC treated with TACE in Europe and Asia. This system might be used to identify patients with HCC most likely to benefit from TACE in clinical practice.

Can we define surgical site infection accurately in colorectal surgery?

BACKGROUND: Increasingly, surgical site infection (SSI) is being tied to quality of care. The incidence of SSI after colorectal surgery differs widely. We hypothesize that it is difficult to define SSI reliably and reproducibly when adhering to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) definitions. METHODS: Elective intra-abdominal colorectal procedures via a clean-contaminated incision performed at a single institution between January 1 and May 1, 2011 were queried. Three attending surgeons examined all patients' records retrospectively for documentation of SSI. These data were compared with the institutional National Surgeon Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) data with regard to deep and superficial incisional SSI. RESULTS: Seventy-one cases met the inclusion criteria. There were six SSIs identified by NSQIP, representing 8.4% of cases. Review of the three attending surgeons demonstrated a significantly higher incidence of SSI, at 27%, 38%, and 23% (p=0.002). The percent of overall agreement between all reviewers was 82.16 with a kappa of 0.64, indicating only modest inter-rater agreement. Lack of attending surgeon documentation and subjective differences in chart interpretation accounted for most discrepancies between the surgeon and NSQIP SSI capture rates. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the difficulty in defining SSI in colon and rectal surgery, which oftentimes is subjective and difficult to discern from the medical record. According to these preliminary data from our institution, there is poor reliability between clinical reviewers in defining SSI on the basis of the CDC criteria, which has serious implications. The interpretation of clinical trials may be jeopardized if we cannot define SSI accurately. Furthermore, according to current CDC definitions and infection tracking strategies, these data suggest that the institutional incidence of SSI may not be a reliable measure by which to compare institutions. Better methods for defining SSI should be implemented if these data are made publicly available and tied to performance measures.

Performance of symptom-based tuberculosis screening among people living with HIV: not as great as hoped.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study was to determine the diagnostic performance of the symptom-based tuberculosis (TB) screening questionnaire recommended by WHO for people living with HIV (PLWH) in resource-limited settings, among adults off and on antiretroviral therapy (ART). DESIGN: Cross-sectional study at two HIV clinics in South Africa. METHODS: A total of 825 PLWH completed the screening questionnaire and underwent investigations [chest radiography (CXR) and microbiologic testing of sputa]. A positive screen was defined as presence of cough, fever, night sweats, or weight loss. Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) was defined as sputum smear positive for acid-fast bacilli or growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. RESULTS: Of 737 participants with at least one diagnostic sputum specimen, PTB was diagnosed in 31 of 522 (5.9%) on ART, and 34 of 215 (15.8%) not on ART. The questionnaire missed 15 of 31 (48.4%) PTB cases on ART, and three of 34 (8.8%) not on ART. Among participants on ART, post-test probability of PTB diagnosis (95% confidence interval) was 6.8% (4.0-10.9%) if screening positive, and 5.2% (2.9-8.4%) if screening negative, whereas among participants not on ART, post-test probabilities were 20.3% (14.2-27.5%) and 4.8% (1.0-13.5%), respectively. Among participants diagnosed with PTB, those on ART were significantly less likely to screen positive (adjusted odds ratio 0.04, 95% confidence interval: 0.01-0.39). In both groups (ART and no ART), screening was more sensitive when CXR was incorporated. CONCLUSION: For case detection and exclusion of PTB, the WHO-recommended questionnaire performed adequately among PLWH not on ART, and poorly among those on ART. Further research is needed to identify feasible and effective TB screening strategies for PLWH in resource-limited settings.