T and B Lymphocytes were studied quantitatively in smear positive and smear negative tuberculosis patients. Compared to healthy controls, the T cells showed a significant decrease in count and the B cells showed no change. The decrease was more significant in smear positive patients. Active pulmonary tuberculosis is is associated with a fall in circulating T cell count.

Subjects confirmed to have pulmonary tuberculosis at least 10 years earlier were chosen for this study. Controls were selected after matching for age, sex occupation and smoking history from normal subjects. Chest skiagram and sputum examination was done in every subject. Those suspected to have lung cancer were investigated in detail. Two out of 280 patients with past tuberculosis and two out of 272 controls were found to have lung cancer. From this study, presented along with hospital statistics it is felt that subjects with past tuberculosis are at no increased risk of lung cancer and perhaps the association is only a coincidence.

Three hundred and ninety seven smear positive patients of pulmonary tuberculosis were randomly put on two rifampicin containing anti-tuberculosis drug regimens with ascorbic acid and without ascorbic acid. Serum rifampicin levels and hepatotoxicity during the study were assessed. Ascorbic acid did not influence the serum levels of rifampicin (p>0.1). However the frequency of hepatitis was less in patients receiving anti-tuberculosis drugs with ascorbic acid (1.7%) compared to those who received anti-tuberculosis drugs alone (3.7%).

A case of Poland’s Syndrome with features of syndactyly and absent middle phalanges of second third and fourth fingers, shortened metacarpals, hypoplstic forearm and absence of sterno-costal portion of the pectoralis major muscle without thoracic cage abnormality is reported.

A case of malignant pleural mesothelioma diagnosed at autopsy is being presented. The tumour had invaded the trachea with extension to pericardium. There were no distant metastases. The case is presented because of its rarity.

A 42 year old female with primary pulmonary hypertension developed hoarseness of voice due to left recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, and dysphagia due to compression of the oesophagus by a dilated pulmonary artery. Hoarseness has been reported as one of the rarer symptoms of primary pulmonary hypertension, while dysphagia as a complication of this disease has not been reported, to the best of our knowledge.

A total of 104 patients with broncho pulmonary infections were screened for the presence of fungi in sputum specimens by using standard techniques. The common isolates were Candida (48%) and Aspergillus (24%), Culture results were correlated with antibody response to fungal antigens by Counter Immuno Electrophoresis (CIEP). Fifty seven per cent of culture positive patients were also positive by the skin test using Aspergillus antigens.