Setting: A major out-patient tuberculosis clinic in Nairobi, Kenya.
Objective: To ascertain the cost-effectiveness of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in an urban setting in a developing country.
Design: A cost-effectiveness analysis of PCR and direct smear microscopy examination based on theoretical modelling. The cost-effectiveness was expressed in costs per correctly diagnosed tuberculosis patient for each of the two diagnostic techniques. Data were obtained from the literature, from the staff and the register at the health facility and from structured interviews with patients. Assumptions were made when no data were available.
Results: The PCR is expected to be more specific and sensitive than the routine procedure for diagnosis, but it is also more costly. The routine procedure based on direct smear microscopy turned out to be 1.8 times as cost-effective as PCR.
Conclusion: It is concluded that the PCR method can potentially be a cost-effective screening procedure for tuberculosis, provided that the largest contributing cost component, the costs of the PCR-kit, can be reduced substantially.