Clinical Value of Molecular Biological Methods in Respiratory Tuberculosis in Children

摘要

The pattern of clinical forms of respiratory tuberculosis in children shows a preponderance of intrathoracic lymph node tuberculosis （89.4%） that is characterized by a complicated process in every third child under present-day conditions. Positive result of PCR closely correlates with the severity and extent of the specific process in children. Real-time PCR （RT-PCR） was ascertain to exhibit the highest sensitivity in detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA in children with primary generalized tuberculosis （62.5%） and in those with a disseminated specific process （55.6%）, which was much higher than conventional bacteriological study of diagnostic materials. By taking into account the findings, the RT-PCR detection of M. tuberculosis was considered as a substantial criterion for evaluating the magnitude of specific changes and the degree of tuberculosis infection activity in children.