[Differential diagnosis of tuberculosis of respiratory organs and pulmonary eosinophilia].

The reasons for misdiagnosis of tuberculosis in patients with pulmonary eosinophilia were analyzed, by using 6 clinical cases as an example. In most cases, the reasons for diagnostic errors are underestimation of elevated eosinophil levels and late afterexamination to verify the diagnosis. With general practitioners' increasing alertness, the inefficiency of antibiotics in patients with initially presumed pneumonia is frequently interpreted as an argument in favor of tuberculosis. Examining the cellular composition of bronchoalveolar lavage permits verification of the diagnosis of pulmonary eosinophilia in questionable cases. It is advisable to use a short course of test therapy with small-dose glucocorticosteroids for differential diagnosis of tuberculosis and pulmonary eosinophilias.