On 6-7 October 2002, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IUATLD), the International Pediatrics Association (IPA), the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United States National Institutes for Health (NIH), and the World Health Organization (WHO) co-sponsored and organized a Workshop on 'Tuberculosis in Children' to assess research needs in childhood tuberculosis (TB) in conjunction with the 33rd IUATLD World Conference on Lung Health. Participants included approximately 40 researchers from the sponsoring organizations as well as from academic institutions, and National Tuberculosis (TB) Programs from a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. The goals of the workshop were to highlight current gaps in knowledge about childhood TB, to assess research opportunities, and to begin to establish working partnerships and identify funding sources. The workshop focused on six key topics: the global epidemiology of TB among children, clinical practice including diagnosis and case management of childhood TB, basic research, programmatic aspects of the control of TB among children, ethics, and effects of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) on TB in children. Review papers on these topics were presented as the foundation for the workshop. Participants were then divided into groups to deliberate on critical areas of research and programmatic needs, recommendations for addressing the needs, and strategic planning to increase international focus on childhood TB. The following summary, including data reported and referenced within the review papers presented at the workshop, represents the proceedings of the workshop.