Pulmonary resection for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: the Israeli experience (1998-2011).

Background: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-1B) presents a difficult therapeutic problem due to the failure of medical treatment. Pulmonary resection is an important adjunctive therapy for selected patients with MDR-TB.

Objectives: To assess the efficacy of pulmonary resection in the management of MDR-TB patients.

The role of interferon-gamma release assays in the diagnosis of active tuberculosis.

Background: Interferon-gamma release tests are appealing alternatives to the tuberculin skin test (TST) for latent tuberculosis infection.

Objectives: To determine the yield of the Quantiferon TB Gold test (QFT-G) in the diagnosis of active tuberculosis disease, with a focus on elderly patients, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection, and extra-pulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB).

Methods: The QFT-G test was performed in 98 patients suspected of having active tuberculosis.