Yield of Acid-fast Smear and Mycobacterial Culture for Tuberculosis Diagnosis in People with Human Immunodeficiency Virus

Abstract

In people with HIV living in settings where mycobacterial culture is not routinely available to all patients, a third sputum smear adds little to the diagnosis of TB. Broth-based culture of three sputum specimens diagnoses most TB cases, and lymph node aspiration provides the highest incremental yield of any nonpulmonary specimen test for TB.