Because this does not rely on production of a reliable antibody response or recoverable pathogen, the technique can be used to detect latent tuberculosis.
[2] This technique has the advantage that it is comparatively fast (results within 24 hours), and less influenced by previous BCG vaccination compared with the traditional testing method for latent tuberculosis, the tuberculin skin test.
ESAT-6 and CFP-10 are expressed by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, but are absent from all currently used BCG vaccines and most nontuberculous mycobacteria.
[citation needed] In one study in Germany, 70 out of 72 patients with confirmed TB infection were T-SPOT.TB positive, indicating a sensitivity of 97.2%.
[4] The performance of interferon-gamma release assays in children has also been questioned by other publications.