Finding hidden tuberculosis by testing adolescents and their household contacts
Official title: A new method for active tuberculosis case finding
Funded at Muhimbili University/ Allied Hlth Scis · NIH-11327288 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers will do regular blood tests for TB infection in Tanzanian adolescents and then check their household members for hidden TB when a teen newly tests positive.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Muhimbili University/ Allied Hlth Scis NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania U Rep) |
| Project start | April 6, 2023 |
| Project end | March 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $132,809 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI176581-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11327288 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adolescents living in the study area of Dar es Salaam who do not have known active TB at enrollment and who can provide consent or parental permission.
✕Less likely to help
People already diagnosed and on treatment for active TB or those living outside the study catchment are unlikely to benefit from participating.
What this research studies
If you join, you would get a blood test called an IGRA at the start and then every few months if your first test is negative so the team can spot new TB infection early. When a teen's test changes from negative to positive, the study team will visit the teen's home and offer testing to the people who live there to find anyone with undiagnosed TB. The goal is to find source cases who may still have active TB nearby so they can get treatment sooner. The work is being carried out in Dar es Salaam by Muhimbili University and builds on earlier school-based testing that showed this approach can find new infections.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: This approach could find people with undiagnosed TB faster in households linked to newly infected adolescents, allowing earlier treatment and possibly reducing spread.
How similar studies have gone: This idea builds on a prior three-year school-based serial testing project in Tanzania that showed regular IGRA testing was feasible and detected new infections, but using converters to target household screening is a novel approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Muhimbili University/ Allied Hlth Scis
Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania U Rep Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Amour, Maryam — Muhimbili University/ Allied Hlth Scis
- Study coordinator: Amour, Maryam
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Coronary disease and immune activation in people with HIV and tuberculosis coinfection
This research looks at how having HIV and latent tuberculosis together might raise the risk of heart disease, and what immune changes are involved.
-
Pulmonary rehabilitation to reduce breathing problems after tuberculosis
A program of guided exercise and breathing training to help adults who have recovered from TB breathe better and feel healthier.
-
Pulmonary rehab to reduce breathing troubles after TB
A program of pulmonary rehabilitation is being studied to help adults who have completed TB treatment avoid ongoing lung problems and improve daily breathing.
-
Air pollution and tuberculosis spread in Kampala, Uganda
This project looks at whether dirty air from PM2.5 particles makes tuberculosis more likely to spread within urban slum households in Kampala, Uganda.
-
Air pollution and TB spread in Ugandan urban slums
This project explores whether exposure to air pollution makes tuberculosis more likely to spread within households in a crowded Ugandan slum.
-
Air pollution and TB transmission in Kampala’s urban slums
This project looks at whether air pollution from PM2.5 makes tuberculosis spread more easily from infected people to their neighbors in urban slums of Kampala, Uganda.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.