Five hundred subjects were included in this work. They werc dividcd into four groups. Group I included 350 newly discovered paticnts with active, sputum positive pulmonary tubel·culc.sis. Group II included 50 paticnts with respiratory diseases othcr than pulmonary tuberculosis. Group III included 50 patients with lion respiratory diseasc. Group [V included 50 clinically apparently healthy subjects as a control group. The subjects were subjected to full history taking, completc clinical cxamination , plain chest x-ray , tubcrculin test , sputum examination fOI" acilj fast bacilli , erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and glutaraldehyde test (G.T.) . Glutaraldehydc test was positive in 289 cases (82.6%) in gJ"OUP 1,5 cases ( 10'1.,) in group II ,8 cases ( 16'Yo) in group III , while all cases of the control group were negative for G.T. Among the tuberculous group there were 276 cases ( 78.9°1.,) positive for both G.T. and tuberculin test, 6 cases ( 1.7°1..) were negative for both tests, 13 cascs ( 3:]%) wel"e positive fOI" G.T. but negative fOI" tuberculin test and 55 cases (15.71 01..) were negative for G.T. but positive for tuberculin test. The correlation bctween G.T. and ESR in the tubCI·Cl.tOUS group was statistically significant. It was found that the scnsitivity of G.T. was 82.6% and specificity was 91.3'1.. in the diagnosis of pulmonary tubcrculosis. |
