Evaluation of various modalities for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in body fluids.

Diagnosis of tuberculosis in body fluids remains an enigma. This study is an attempt to evaluate various modalities like smear, culture & PCR for the same. Out of 110 samples of body fluids, 68(61.8%) were negative by all the modalities, 11(10%) could be diagnosed by all modalities. 25(22.72%) were diagnosed by PCR alone. 3(2.7%) showed a growth on culture alone while 3 cases (2.7%) could be demonstrated only on smear.