01776nas a2200253   4500000000100000008004100001260001200042653001800054653001400072653002500086653002200111100001300133700001200146700001300158700001300171700001500184700001600199700001700215245013400232300001100366490000800377520112300385022001401508       2021                            d  c02/202110aData accuracy10adiagnosis10aMycobacterium leprae10aSystematic review1 aTorres R1 aFachi M1 aBöger B1 aMarson B1 aFerreira V1 aPontarolo R1 aGuimarães T00aSensitivity and specificity of multibacillary and paucibacillary leprosy laboratory tests: A systematic review and meta-analysis.  a1153370 v1003 a<p>This systematic review (number register: CRD42018112736) was performed to compare the sensitivity and specificity of leprosy diagnostic methods. The search was conducted in 3 electronic databases in January 2021. Studies evaluating leprosy diagnostic tests were included according the eligibility criteria. Meta-analysis was performed to calculate the sensibility and specificity of the groups. We included 36 studies. The test sensitivity for paucibacillary patients was 0.31 (95%CI: 0.29-0.33) and the specificity was 0.92 (95%CI: 0.92-0.93). In multibacillary patients, the sensitivity was 0.78 (95%CI: 0.77-0.80) and specificity was 0.92 (95%CI: 0.92-0.93). Comparing the sensitivity and specificity of the different techniques included, it should be noted that polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test presented the highest sensitivity for paucibacillary patients, while the western blot technique showed the highest sensitivity for multibacillary patients. However, further studies are needed to optimise the diagnosis of leprosy, requiring research with a larger number of samples and more uniform protocols.</p>  a1879-0070