MOPEIA HOSTS INITIATIVE AIMED TO IMPROVE THE DETECTION OF TUBERCULOSIS CASES

Hospital Distrital de Mopeia, one of the study implementation sites.

In the coming months, the district of Mopeia, in the Zambézia province, will host the implementation of an innovative project led by the Manhiça Health Research Centre (CISM), which aims to evaluate the diagnostic performance of tongue swab testing for the detection of Tuberculosis (TB) among contacts of bacteriologically confirmed pulmonary TB patients.

Named MOVE-TB, the initiative is funded by the Fundació La Marató de 3Cat and by Johnson & Johnson Charity, and proposes to assess the diagnostic performance of a simple, non-invasive and potentially scalable approach: tongue swab testing for tuberculosis detection. Samples collected among household and community contacts of confirmed pulmonary TB cases will be analysed using the molecular platform PlusLife MiniDock MTB .

The project aims to determine whether this strategy can contribute to improving the early detection of the disease and support the integration of new screening tools into the National Tuberculosis Control Programme. The study will also evaluate the impact of repeated screenings at 6 and 12 months after the initial assessment, as well as the operational feasibility and acceptability of the strategy in community settings.

According to Alberto García-Basteiro, researcher of the study at CISM and the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), shared that, “MOVE-TB is a two-year longitudinal diagnostic study that will be conducted among household and close contacts of bacteriologically confirmed pulmonary TB index cases. The study is expected to recruit around 2,499 participants, including children and adults.”

For Sozinho Acácio, also principal investigator of the study at CISM, MOVE-TB represents an innovative and highly relevant approach for high TB burden settings such as the district of Mopeia. “We intend to demonstrate that a decentralised testing strategy, based on low-cost tests, can be feasible and effective in reducing the impact of the disease in contexts that urgently need new solutions,” he highlights.

With this initiative, the team hopes to improve the early detection of TB cases among high-risk contacts, including children and people living with HIV--groups that often face difficulties in producing sputum for conventional diagnosis. The study also seeks to increase the acceptability of screening through a simple and non-invasive method, support decentralised community-based diagnostic strategies, and contribute to reducing disease transmission through earlier diagnosis and treatment.

Despite the progress made in tuberculosis control efforts in Mozambique and worldwide, the disease continues to represent a major public health problem. A significant proportion of cases remain undiagnosed, particularly among contacts of people with confirmed TB. Traditional screening methods, based on symptoms and sputum analysis, may fail to detect early or asymptomatic cases, especially in children and in individuals who are unable to produce sputum.

By evaluating a non-invasive, community-based and potentially scalable methodology, the evidence generated by MOVE-TB may contribute to strengthening contact screening strategies and improving tuberculosis control in Mozambique.