Korean J Pediatr Infect Dis.  2011 Jun;18(1):1-14.

Korean Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Tuberculosis in Children and Adolescents

• Choi KM
• Kim NH
• Kim DH
• Kim YJ
• Kim JH
• Oh SH
• Eun BW
• Lee SY
• Lee TJ
• Chun JK
• Hong JY

Abstract

Tuberculosis is a disease with high morbidity and mortality in children worldwide. Despite the decrease in the incidence of tuberculosis in Korea, more than 30,000 new patients are diagnosed each year. Active tuberculosis is less frequent in children compared to adults but the risk of miliary tuberculosis and CNS tuberculosis is much higher. The diagnosis of tuberculosis in children and adolescents is difficult due to the nonspecific symptoms upon presentation. Diagnostic work up is based on the confirmation of tuberculosis infection by tuberculin skin test, abnormal radiologic findings, and contact with an adult with active tuberculosis. Anti-tuberculosis medications are prescribed according to the drug susceptibility of the index patient. Latent tuberculosis infection plays an important role in adult tuberculosis by reactivation. Thus, it is critical to accurately diagnose latent tuberculosis in children to prevent reactivation in adulthood. Korean guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in children and adolescents provide evidence based recommendations in the optimal diagnosis and treatment for active and latent tuberculosis in children and adolescents based on the current Korean situation.

Keyword

Tuberculosis; Children; Adolescents

MeSH Terms

Adolescent
Adult
Child
Humans
Incidence
Korea
Latent Tuberculosis
Skin Tests
Tuberculin
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, Miliary
Tuberculin

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