Pericardial TB is a World Health Organization stage IV condition and thus antiretroviral therapy is indicated regardless of CD4+ lymphocyte count.21 There is recent evidence to support the early initiation of combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) during antituberculous therapy for pulmonary TB, although the optimal time to start has yet to be determined.22 Patients with EPTB were not included in this trial and only observational data including patients with EPTB support the benefit of early antiretroviral therapy in this context.23 The gene discussed is CD4; the disease is pulmonary tuberculosis.