ObjectiveTo investigate the diagnostic value of tuberculosis T cell spot test (T-SPOT.TB) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) test in the diagnosis of simple pulmonary nodules in Xinjiang.MethodsA retrospective analysis of 72 patients with asymptomatic simple pulmonary nodules in the Department of Thoracic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from October 2017 to July 2019 was performed. According to the pathological results, the patients were divided into a tuberculoma group [n=23, including 14 males and 9 females, aged 37-84 (56.91±12.73) years] and a lung cancer group [n=49, including 31 males and 18 females, aged 34-83 (61.71±10.15) years]. The predictive value of T-SPOT.TB and ESR results for the diagnosis of simple pulmonary nodules was evaluated.ResultsThe positive rate of T-SPOT.TB in the tuberculoma group (69.60%) was higher than that in the lung cancer group (42.90%) (χ2=5.324, P=0.021), with a sensitivity of 69.56% and specificity of 57.14%; the positive ESR was 47.80% in the tuberculoma group and 59.20% in the lung cancer group, and no statistical difference was found between the two groups (χ2=0.981, P=0.322), with a sensitivity of 47.82% and specificity of 40.81%; the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was 0.618, the 95% confidence interval of AUC was (0.479, 0.758), and the Youden’s index was 0.267 with a sensitivity of 69.60% and specificity of 57.10%. Difference in the T-SPOT.TB and ESR test results was statistically significant (χ2=4.986, P=0.026), but the correlation between the tests was weak with a Pearson contingency coefficient of 0.199. ESR results in patients with different ages were statistically different (χ2=7.343, P=0.025), but the correlation between age and ESR results was weak with a Pearson contingency coefficient of 0.239; T-SPOT.TB results in patients with different ages were not statistically different (χ2=0.865, P=0.649), and the correlation between age and ESR results was weak with a Pearson contingency coefficient of 0.084.ConclusionThe diagnostic value of T-SPOT.TB and ESR tests is small in the diagnosis of simple pulmonary nodules.