Assessment of the use and need for an integrated molecular surveillance of tuberculosis: an online survey in Germany

Background The implementation of an integrated molecular surveillance (IMS) of tuberculosis (TB) is of high priority for TB control. IMS is defined as the systematic inclusion of molecular typing results in the national TB surveillance system. Although not standardized, an IMS of TB is already implemented in several low TB incidence countries. Germany is in the process of implementing a nationwide IMS of TB. This requires close collaboration between national and local health authorities. We conducted an online survey to understand the current use of molecular typing results for TB surveillance among the local public health offices (PHO)s in Germany, and to collect their perception and expectations towards the implementation of a nationwide IMS of TB.