Symptoms of tuberculosis are most often not evocative; what is suggest
ive of tuberculosis is the existence of risk factors for the disease a
nd chronic symptoms. Patients consult their physician with variable de
lays that depend on factors that are not well identified yet; physicia
ns evoke the diagnosis more likely if they are familiarized with the d
isease, what will probably become less frequent in areas of low preval
ence for tuberculosis. The key point is the thoracic radiography that
is very often very suggestive and leads by the recourse to bacteriolog
y or by convergent diagnostic elements to treatment.