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Abstract Background Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) plays a key role in the containment of tuberculosis. The relationship between the TNF -238G/A polymorphism and tuberculosis susceptibility remains inconclusive. A comprehensive meta-analysis was made to provide a more precise estimate of the relationship between them. Methods Multiple search strategies were used. A fixed effect model was takentook to estimate pooled OR with 95% confidence interval (CI) for the association between the TNF -238G/A polymorphism and tuberculosis susceptibility. The Chi-squared-based Q-test and I-squaredI2 statistic were calculated to examine heterogeneity. Begg’s funnel plot and Egger’s test were used to assess publication bias. Results 9 case-control studies were included in this meta-analysis. No significant heterogeneity was demonstrated, and no obvious publication bias was detected among the included studies. The meta-analysis indicated that there was no significant association between the TNF -238G/A polymorphism and tuberculosis susceptibility (GA+AA versus GG model: OR=1.005, 95% CI: 0.765-1.319; A versus G model: OR=1.000, 95% CI: 0.769-1.300). In the subgroup analyses by ethnicity, types of TB and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status, no significant association were identified. Conclusions The meta-analysis involving 2723 subjects did not detect any association between the TNF -238G/A polymorphism and tuberculosis susceptibility.