What is the clinical picture of TB in children and how is it diagnosed?
1. Childhood tuberculosis in IHV-negative patients TB in children is usually primary in nature, although it could appear as a generalized disease, affecting any part of the body. Also, under the age of 10 years, children with pulmonary tuberculosis rarely cough up sputum. They usually swallow their sputum. Gastric suction and laryngeal swabs are generally not useful for diagnosis unless facilities are available for M, tuberculosis culture. However, early morning gastric lavage samples may be positive. Hence the diagnosis of TB in children is nearly always presumptive, as is sputum smear-negative pulmonary or extra-pulmonary TB among adults. The clinical features of TB in children are constitutional and localized in nature (depending on the part of the body affected). The diagnosis is based on clinical features and investigation findings. If available,a tuberculin skin test may be helpful. In most cases, a child with suspected pulmonary TB has usually received treatment with a broad-spe
