Comparative study of Smear Microscopy, Rapid Slide Culture, and Lowenstein - Jensen culture in cases of pulmonary tuberculosis in a tertiary care hospital.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB), a dreadful disease known to mankind continues to be a problem in a developing country like India. The incidence of people getting infected with TB is on the rise due to compounding factors like coinfection with the human immunodefiency virus and multidrug-resistant strains. There is a definitive need for early diagnosis and treatment of TB to curb transmission of the infection.