[Tuberculosis--recurrence: incidence, causes, treatment].

By reducing the anti-tuberculous therapy to six to nine months and the fact that tuberculosis occurs in immunocompromised patients raises the question of relapse after treatment. In order to avoid such relapses the drug therapy has to be optimized regarding duration (minimum six months) as well as combination (bactericidal antituberculous drugs) and the patients' compliance has to be monitored carefully. Special monitoring is necessary with immunocompromised patients. The problem of resistance against antituberculous drugs (especially Isoniazid) has to be taken into consideration. The most relapses occur during the first year after termination of therapy.