Bronchoscopic Analysis in Sputum Smear Negative Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients A Hospital based Study

Introduction: India has the highest burden of TB cases in the world, majority of them are pulmonary tuberculosis. The method of choice for diagnosis of PTB is microscopic examination of AFB by sputum smear. However, 30 to 50% of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis can have negative sputum report or may not produce sputum. Flexible fibreoptic bronchoscopy can provide excellent material for diagnosis for patients with suspected sputum smear negative pulmonary tuberculosis. Study aimed to evaluate the role of fiber optic bronchoscopy in sputum smear negative pulmonory tuberculosis.