Tuberculosis of the spine is very common and it is important to do confirmatory testing.

This retrospective study involved 40 patients in whom tuberculosis of the spine was diagnosed after clinical examination and investigations. All underwent decompression of the spine for neurological fallout. Intra-operatively, histological tissue, MCS and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were assessed. PCR was positive in only 50% of the patients, but was complementary to histology and MCS.