Use of a WHO-recommended algorithm to reduce mortality in seriously ill patients with HIV infection and smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis in South Africa: an observational cohort study.

Background: In 2007, WHO released revised recommendations and an algorithm for the diagnosis and treatment of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis in seriously ill people living with HIV/AIDS. We aimed to assess the effect of the recommendations on clinical outcome in patients in South Africa.

Methods: We enrolled seriously ill patients (aged ≥15 years) with HIV infection and suspected smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis from three hospitals in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.