title: Undiagnosed tuberculosis in hospitalized patients--an autopsy survey.
abstract: Tuberculosis (TB) causes unnecessary deaths because of failure to diagnose and treat what is today a curable disease. A retrospective study was carried out in a general hospital to assess the magnitude of undiagnosed tuberculosis in hospitalized patients. Sixty-three cases of active tuberculosis, 39 of which were diagnosed only at autopsy, were found among 1306 autopsy cases during a three year study period. The reasons for the failure of diagnosis are discussed. For a correct diagnosis, the post-mortem examination must be systematic and include bacteriological and histological studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Queen Mary Hospital, University of Hong Kong.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: T H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Ng
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology