This study was carried out in 280 patients in 1994 in five medico-social centres (CMS) in the city of Paris for the follow up of treatment tuberculous disease. The group represented approximately one fifth of the tuberculous patients in Paris. 90.7% of the subjects were of foreign origin, predominantly African. Amongst these 280 patients, 80% were unemployed and 64.6% without social security protection. Their tuberculous disease did not differ on clinical grounds from those of the general population but they were less often vaccinated with BCG. They are also less often co-infected with the HIV virus (4.4 vs 12-16%). The level of resistance to isoniazid and rifampicin was 1.4%. A cure was certainly achieved in 73.5% of the patients. For the remainder, the absence of information and the loss to follow up prevented us from having a definite answer. The patients lost to follow numbered 56 and represented 20% of the group.