What does IGRA mean in CLINICAL MEDICINE

IGRA stands for Interferon-gamma release assay, which is a laboratory test used to measure levels of IFN-γ, a type of cytokine produced by the body in response to certain antigens or pathogens. Q2: How does it work? A2: During IGRA testing, blood samples are taken from the patient and exposed to TB antigens. If there is an immune response, then IFN-γ will be released into the sample as part of this response. The amount of IFN-γ present can then be measured and used to diagnose TB infection.

Yes, IGRA tests have been shown to be very accurate in determining whether an individual has tuberculosis infection or not. In some cases they are more accurate than traditional culture tests.

People who have been exposed to someone with active TB or have symptoms consistent with TB should get tested using an IGRA test to determine whether they have TB or not.

One disadvantage of IGRA testing is that it may take several hours before results can be obtained since it relies on detection of an immune response rather than direct detection of the pathogen itself. In addition, some people may need more than one test due to false positives or false negatives during testing; however this is rare and usually only happens when exposure was recent or exposure was very high.