Accuracy of confirmation of the diagnosis "Tuberculosis"

It has been shown that the interpretation of conventional radiography gives a large percentage of errors, and the diagnosis of tuberculosis, established in this way, requires confirmation by setting tuberculin skin tests, detection of tubercle bacilli, or by histological examination. The authors cite the results of a study of 1295 patients admitted to the Central Washington Tuberculosis Hospital for 5 years from 1950 to 1954. The diagnosis of active tuberculosis was confirmed only in 629 cases by detection of BK or by pathological examination. A study of tuberculin skin reactions in the United States in 1954 showed that only 3.9% of children develop positive reactions. With the correct setting in a dilution of 1: 1000-1: 100, a negative Mantoux reaction excludes tuberculosis in 95-97%. Exceptions to this rule (5–3%) refer to infected children with not yet developed tuberculin sensitivity (from 42 to 120 days from the moment of infection) and to agonizing patients who have lost sensitivity. Mass fluoroscopy revealed 600 persons suspected of tuberculosis among hospital patients; however, 59% of them were excluded from this group on the basis of negative Mantoux reactions.