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Case Study

Pakistan – Mobile X-ray-based active case-finding at scale

Community members gathering around the Delft Mobile Clinic for TB screening on a busy street in Pakistan.

Mobile digital chest X-ray screening is increasingly used to support active TB case finding in high-burden countries. Evidence from large-scale implementation remains essential to guide targeting strategies and diagnostic integration. 

*This study was conducted using CAD4TB, now part of CAD4TB+.

Intervention

A multi-year national analysis was conducted in Pakistan of mobile X-ray screening camps using CAD4TB, capturing screening coverage, TB yield, and bacteriological confirmation.

Result
  • More than one million individuals were screened, resulting in several thousand TB dianognoses.
  • TB yield varied substantially across regions, with higher detection rates in selected geographic areas.
  • Approximately half of detected cases were bacteriologically confirmed.
Community members gathering around the Delft Mobile Clinic for TB screening on a busy street in Pakistan.
Conclusion
  • Geographic targeting can improve the efficiency of large-scale mobile X-ray screening.
  • Strengthening linkages to sputum collectiion and molecular diagnostics remains critical to reduce empiric treatment.

REFERENCE: Zaidi S.M.A. et al. (2025). Detection of pulmonary tuberculosis through mobile X-ray based active case-finding in Pakistan. BMJ Global Health.