Meta-Analysis
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World J Gastroenterol. Nov 28, 2013; 19(44): 8133-8140
Published online Nov 28, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i44.8133
Effectiveness of interferon-gamma release assays for differentiating intestinal tuberculosis from Crohn’s disease: A meta-analysis
Wen Chen, Jun-Hua Fan, Wei Luo, Peng Peng, Si-Biao Su
Wen Chen, Department of Educational Administration, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning 530021, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
Jun-Hua Fan, Wei Luo, Peng Peng, Si-Biao Su, Department of Gastroenterology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning 530021, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China
Author contributions: Su SB designed the study, searched the databases, extracted the data, analyzed the results, and wrote the manuscript; Chen W helped design the study, searched the databases, and wrote and revised the manuscript; Fan JH formulated the research question, and helped with database searches and analysis; Luo W and Peng P helped design the data abstraction form and served as second reviewers in extracting the data; all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Correspondence to: Dr. Si-Biao Su, Department of Gastroenterology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, No. 22, Shuangyong Road, Nanning 530021, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. susibiao@gmail.com
Telephone: +86-771-5356501 Fax: +86-771-5356585
Received: August 5, 2013
Revised: September 15, 2013
Accepted: October 17, 2013
Published online: November 28, 2013
Processing time: 127 Days and 16.9 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: The misdiagnosis rate between Crohn’s disease (CD) and intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) is 50%-70%. Interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) have been used mainly to identify latent tuberculosis infection in patients in several areas and countries. However, the clinical usefulness of IGRAs in the differential diagnosis of ITB from CD is unknown. This is the first study to investigate the clinical usefulness of IGRAs in the differential diagnosis of ITB from CD by meta-analysis. IGRAs provided good specificity for ITB, and should be helpful in the differential diagnosis of ITB from CD.