Context: Diagnosing active tuberculosis based only on signs and symptoms is difficult, as is diagnosing the disease in those who are immunosuppressed. A diagnosis of TB should, however, be considered in those with signs of lung disease or constitutional symptoms lasting longer than two weeks. A chest X-ray and multiple sputum cultures for acid-fast bacilli are typically part of the initial evaluation. Interferon-γ release assays and tuberculin skin tests are of little use in the developing world. IGRA have similar limitations in those with HIV.

Question: Is active TB difficult or easy to diagnose by patients' symptoms alone?
Answer: difficult

Question: If a patient has some symptoms associated with TB, after what time period should tuberculosis be diagnostically considered?
Answer: two weeks

Question: What part of the body would be X-rayed to check for TB?
Answer: chest

Question: What sign of TB infection would a lab be looking for in a sputum culture?
Answer: acid-fast bacilli

Question: Along with interferon-y release essays, what other tests aren't useful in TB diagnosis in developing countries?
Answer: tuberculin skin tests

Question: What is usually diagnosed using just signs and symptoms?
Answer: Unanswerable

Question: How long do symptoms in someone who is immunosuppressed last?
Answer: Unanswerable

Question: What kind of cultures test for HIV?
Answer: Unanswerable

Question: What kind of tests are common in developing countries?
Answer: Unanswerable

Question: What type of bacilli do interferon-y release assays look for?
Answer: Unanswerable