If a tuberculosis screening test has high sensitivity but low specificity, which outcome is most likely?

• A. Many false negatives.
• B. Many false positives.
• C. Highly consistent results.
• D. No false results.

Answer: (B)

High sensitivity means the test will catch most people who actually have the disease, while low specificity means many people without the disease will still test positive. Put together, this design flags a large number of true disease cases but also mislabels many healthy individuals as positive. The most likely outcome is a large number of false positives. Because sensitivity is high, false negatives are rare, but low specificity ensures you’ll see many positive results that aren’t true disease. In practice, this leads to many follow-up tests or unnecessary concern for those who don’t have TB.