The Value of Chest CT in Early Triage of Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients: Diagnostic Accuracy and Clinical Correlations

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health concern and requires improvements in diagnostic and treatment methods to achieve target disease control.This study evaluated the effectiveness of computed tomography (CT) findings in triaging patients with TB for early isolation.Methods and Results: A retrospective study was conducted at King Abdulaziz University Hospital (KAUH), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from February to August 2015.Mortality was significantly associated with airspace opacities (p = 0.003), reinforcing their potential for risk stratification.Nodule detection correlated with smear positivity (p = 0.028), highlighting the usefulness of CT in the early triage of patients with TB.Sensitivity and specificity analyses suggest that CT findings support initial isolation strategies, complementing microbiological testing.Conclusion: Computed tomography is helpful for the early triaging of TB patients, particularly through nodule detection and the assessment of airspace opacities.While it does not definitively diagnose TB, it supports the identification of higher-risk cases for early isolation and treatment.The association between CT findings and mortality highlights its role in prognostication, with airspace opacities suggesting a potential marker for outcome prediction in TB patients.