Tuberculous pleurisy does not usually affect life expectancy and may lead to death from respiratory failure in only a very small number of patients.
Tuberculous pleurisy is a disease that occurs when Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection affects the pleural area and tuberculous pleurisy develops. With active treatment, including anti-tuberculosis therapy and extraction of pleural fluid (fluid that stays in the chest cavity), most patients are able to control the disease and gradually move towards recovery, which is usually not life-threatening.
In a very small number of patients, the condition of TB and TB pleurisy progresses due to lack of active treatment, and lung function declines as a result of the disease. In severe cases, respiratory failure can occur, which can be life-threatening if not resuscitated in time.
Therefore, in general, tuberculous pleurisy does not affect life expectancy, and only in a small percentage of cases is respiratory failure life-threatening.