Extrapulmonary tuberculosis explained

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis is tuberculosis (TB) within a location in the body other than the lungs. It accounts for an increasing fraction of active cases, from 20 to 40% according to published reports,[1] and causes other kinds of TB.[2] [3] These are collectively denoted as "extrapulmonary tuberculosis". Extrapulmonary TB occurs more commonly in immunosuppressed persons and young children. In those with HIV, this occurs in more than 50% of cases.[3] Notable extrapulmonary infection sites include the pleura (in tuberculous pleurisy), the central nervous system (in tuberculous meningitis), the lymphatic system (in scrofula of the neck), the genitourinary system (in urogenital tuberculosis), and the bones and joints (in Pott disease of the spine), among others.

Infection of the lymph nodes, known as tubercular lymphadenitis, is the most common extrapulmonary form of tuberculosis.[4] An ulcer originating from nearby infected lymph nodes may occur and is painless. It typically enlarges slowly and has an appearance of "wash leather".[5]

When it spreads to the bones, it is known as skeletal tuberculosis, a form of osteomyelitis.[6] Tuberculosis has been present in humans since ancient times.[7]

Central nervous system infections include tuberculous meningitis, intracranial tuberculomas, and spinal tuberculous arachnoiditis.

Gastrointestinal

See also: Paratuberculosis. Abdominal infections include gastrointestinal tuberculosis (which is important to distinguish from Crohn's disease, since immunosuppressive therapy used for the latter can lead to dissemination), tuberculous peritonitis, and genitourinary tuberculosis.

A potentially more serious, widespread form of TB is called "disseminated tuberculosis", also known as miliary tuberculosis.[8] Miliary TB currently makes up about 10% of extrapulmonary cases.[9]

Pleural effusion

This condition is one of the common forms of extrapulmonary tuberculosis. It occurs during acute phases of the disease, with fever, cough, and pain while breathing (pleurisy). Pleural fluid usually contains mainly lymphocytes and the Mycobacterium bacteria. Gold standard of diagnosis is the detection of Mycobacterium in pleural fluid. Other diagnostic tests include the detection of adenosine deaminase (above 40 U/L) and interferon gamma in pleural fluid.[10]

Notes and References

  1. 22542414. 2012. Mazza-Stalder J, Nicod L, Janssens JP . La tuberculose extrapulmonaire [Extrapulmonary tuberculosis]. 29. 4. 566–578. Revue des Maladies Respiratoires . 10.1016/j.rmr.2011.05.021.
  2. 25131362. 2015. Ketata W, Rekik WK, Ayadi H, Kammoun S . Les tuberculoses extrapulmonaires [Extrapulmonary tuberculosis]. 71. 2–3. 83–92. Revue de Pneumologie Clinique . 10.1016/j.pneumo.2014.04.001.
  3. 16300038. 2005. Golden MP, Vikram HR . Extrapulmonary tuberculosis: an overview. 72. 9. 1761–8. American Family Physician .
  4. Rockwood. RR. Extrapulmonary TB: what you need to know.. The Nurse Practitioner. August 2007. 32. 8. 44–9. 17667766. 10.1097/01.npr.0000282802.12314.dc.
  5. Book: Burkitt, H. George. Essential Surgery: Problems, Diagnosis & Management 4th ed. 2007. 9780443103452. 34. Churchill Livingstone .
  6. Book: Kumar V, Abbas AK, Fausto N, Mitchell RN . 2007 . Robbins Basic Pathology . 8th . Saunders Elsevier . 516–522 . 978-1-4160-2973-1.
  7. Lawn. SD. Zumla, AI . Tuberculosis. Lancet. 2 July 2011. 378. 9785. 57–72. 21420161. 10.1016/S0140-6736(10)62173-3. 208791546.
  8. Book: Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett's principles and practice of infectious diseases . 2010 . Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier . 2010 . 978-0-443-06839-3 . Mandell . Gerald L. . 7th . Philadelphia, PA . Chapter 250 . 370605770 . Bennett . John E. . Dolin . Raphael.
  9. Book: Mayo Clinic . Mayo Clinic internal medicine concise textbook . 2008 . Mayo Clinic Scientific Press [u.a.] . 2008 . 978-1-4200-6749-1 . Habermann . Thomas M. . Rochester, Minn . 789 . Ghosh . Amit K. . live . dmy-all . https://web.archive.org/web/20150906190055/https://books.google.com/books?id=YJtodBwNxokC&pg=PA789 . 6 September 2015.
  10. Zhai K, Lu Y, Shi HZ . Tuberculous pleural effusion . Journal of Thoracic Disease . 8 . 7 . E486–94 . July 2016 . 27499981 . 4958858 . 10.21037/jtd.2016.05.87 . free .