Abacillary pulmonary tuberculosis.
In Copenhagen, a city with a low incidence of tuberculosis, 72 patients with discrete pulmonary infiltrates on the chest X-ray had a tentative diagnosis of tuberculosis. All were sputum smear negative for acid-fast bacilli. A prospective randomised study was carried out to determine whether these patients would benefit from chemotherapy. Out of the 72 patients, 22 (30.6%) had positive cultures initially and were treated. Of the remaining 50 patients, 22 received chemotherapy and 28 were untreated controls. Among the untreated patients 8 (29%) later became culture positive for M. tuberculosis, whereas none of the treated patients developed culture positive tuberculosis during the follow-up period of 5 years.
Nørregaard
J
J
Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Heckscher
T
T
Viskum
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology*
D000995:Antitubercular Agents