David Moore, Mishal Khan, Nicholas Grassly and Lisa McNally - 23 August 2007

In this programme, presented by Peter Goodwin:

Seven-Day Low-Cost Tuberculosis Diagnosis A new test for TB (reported in the New England Journal of Medicine) has proved more powerful, faster and yet cheaper than any alternative. David Moore explains how the Microscopic-Observation Drug-Susceptibility (MODS) Assay is highly sensitive and specific, and also yields drug susceptibility data.

Improved TB Detection in Women Improving on notoriously low TB detection rates in resource-limited parts of the world may be easily achieved, according to Mishal Khan. The effectiveness of screening can be strengthened by giving comprehensive instructions to women before they produce sputum for testing.

Ultimate Eradication of Polio? A monovalent vaccine for type 1 polio has been tested in India where the virus persists, Nicholas Grassly explains why he thinks the vaccine will be much more effective than the trivalent vaccine.

Pneumonia Treatment Guidelines Should Change! With pneumonia the leading cause of child mortality, treatment needs to be flawless. But recent research reveals that current WHO guidelines need to be revised, according to investigator, Lisa McNally.