Hepatitis granulomatosa en paciente con tuberculosis miliar: presentación de un caso / Granulomatous hepatitis in a patient with Miliary Tuberculosis: presentation of a case

La hepatitis granulomatosa como elemento inicial de una enfermedad tuberculosa es muy poco frecuente. El rendimiento de las pruebas para el diagnóstico de tuberculosis hepática resulta baja, siendo las principales causas de granulomatosis hepática las infecciones (tuberculosis, brucelosis, hongos, parásitos, etc). En la tuberculosis miliar, durante la diseminación hemática, que ocurre en el desarrollo de la primoinfección, el hígado es capaz de recibir y albergar una carga considerable de bacilos por sus características anatomofuncionales que se agrupan en forma de granuloma, que es un patrón de reacción inflamatoria crónica en el que predomina un tipo especial de célula denominada macrófago. Esto es causa frecuente de síndrome febril prolongado de causa sistémica, puede debutar con manifestaciones clínicas poco precisas. Se presentó un caso del sexo masculino que ingresa en el servicio de Medicina del Hospital Militar Docente Dr Mario Muñoz Monroy, de Matanzas, que ingresa por cuadro de fiebre de origen desconocido, que resultó ser por esta causa.

Granulomatous hepatitis as initial element of a tubercular disease is few frequent; the efficacy of the tests for diagnosing hepatic tuberculosis is low, being infections (tuberculosis, brucellosis, fungi, parasites, etc). The main cause of hepatic granulomatosis. during the hematic dissemination in the miliary tuberculosis, occurring in the development of primo-infection, liver is able of receiving and dwelling a considerable charge of bacilli due to its anatomic functional characteristics; they group in the form of granulomas, a pattern of chronic inflammatory reaction, in which there is a predomination of an special kind of cells called macrophages; it frequently causes a prolonged febrile syndrome and may start with little precise clinical manifestations. We present the case of a male patient entering the Medicine Service of the Military Hospital Dr Mario Muñoz Monroy of Matanzas, with a picture of unknown origin fever, resulting being originated by this cause.

Primary nodular hepatic tuberculosis mimicking hepatic neoplasia in an immunocompetent host

We present and describe a case of nodular primary hepatic tuberculosis mimicking hepatic neoplasia in an immunocompetent host. This particularly rare presentation, associated with unspecific imaging, laboratory andclinical findings and relatively unspecific microbiological results make diagnosis extremely difficult, usually requiring surgical intervention.

Tuberculosis hepática pseudotumoral: reporte de caso / Hepatic Tuberculosis pseudotumoral: case report

El compromiso hepático por tuberculosis es una presentación rara de la enfermedad. Su espectro clínico es variado; siendo una de las formas el tuberculoma hepático o tuberculosis pseudotumoral entidad poco frecuente que no muestra sintomatología específica, por lo que es difícil diagnosticarla. Se reporta el caso de un paciente con tuberculosis hepática pseudotumoral, cuyos síntomas de presentación fueron dolor en hipocondrio derecho y pérdida de peso. La tomografía computarizada mostró presencia de una lesión hepática sólida hipodensa que captaba sustancia de contraste de forma heterogénea. Fue sometido a hepatectomia segmentaria con la sospecha clínica de neoplasia maligna, sin embargo el estudio anatomopatológico confirmó el diagnóstico de tuberculosis. No se encontró foco primario en otras localizaciones. El paciente posteriormente recibió tratamiento antibiótico específico y evolucionó clínicamente bien.

Clinical features of hepatic tuberculosis in biopsy-proven cases / 대한간학회지

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: Hepatic involvement is frequently observed in patients with miliary tuberculosis, but primary hepatic tuberculosis with no clinical extrahepatic manifestations of tuberculosis is uncommon. With the ever-increasing number of immunocompromised patients, it is expected that hepatic tuberculosis will occur more frequently. The aim of the present study was to establish the clinical manifestations and course of the disease. METHODS: From January 1989 to September 2008, 12 patients were diagnosed with hepatic tuberculosis by liver biopsy at Seoul National University Hospital. We retrospectively evaluated their clinical, laboratory, and imaging findings by medical record review. RESULTS: Four patients had primary hepatic tuberculosis, and eight patients had hepatic tuberculosis secondary to pulmonary or miliary tuberculosis. Three patients were immunocompromised, and six patients had no previous medical problem. An elevated serum level of alkaline phosphatase was the most frequently observed finding in laboratory tests. Imaging studies showed variable findings, including hepatosplenomegaly, multiple hepatic nodules, abscess formation, and even normal findings. Ten patients responded to antituberculosis drugs, and two cases with tuberculous liver abscess had persistent disease despite prolonged therapy. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with a protracted illness, hepatosplenomegaly and/or abnormal liver function tests, hepatic tuberculosis should be suspected, even in healthy young patients or patients with normal imaging findings. Patients with tuberculous abscess formation tend to respond poorly to antituberculosis therapy, and surgery could be considered in these patients.

Hepatic tuberculosis mimicking Klatskin tumor: a diagnostic dilemma.

Tubercular involvement of liver is rare and usually occurs in association with pulmonary or miliary tuberculosis, as diffuse involvement without recognizable pulmonary tuberculosis or rarely in a localized form, which presents as a tuberculoma or tubercular abscess. We report the case of a 22-year-old boy presenting with features of obstructive jaundice and a clinico-radiological picture highly suggestive of a perihilar cholangiocarcinoma (Klatskin tumor), but found to have tubercular involvement of porta hepatis. We review the literature on this unusual presentation, highlight the considerable diagnostic challenge such cases can pose, and also emphasize the need to consider tuberculosis in differential diagnosis of lesions involving the porta hepatis, particularly in areas endemic for the disease.

Hepatobiliary tuberculosis in western India.

Tuberculous involvement of liver as a part of disseminated tuberculosis is seen in up to 50-80% cases, but localized hepatobiliary tuberculosis (HBTB) is uncommonly described. During 6 years, a total of 280 consecutive patients with TB were evaluated prospectively for the presence and etiology of liver involvement. Cases with miliary TB or immunosuppression and cases receiving anti-tuberculosis drugs prior to presentation to our unit were excluded (38 cases). Details of clinical, biochemical and imaging findings and histology/microbiology were noted. Of 242 included cases, 38 patients (15.7%; age 38.1 +/- 12.5 years; sex ratio 2.5:1) had HBTB, whereas 20 patients (9%; age 39.3 +/- 16.3 years; sex ratio 2.1:1) had other liver diseases. Diagnosis of HBTB was based on caseating granuloma on histology (18/23 procedures), positive smear/culture for acid-fast bacilli (21/39 procedures) and positive polymerase chain reaction for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (28/29 procedures) when diagnostic procedures were guided by imaging results. Thirty-eight cases with HBTB were classified as follows [patients (n), (%)]: (A) hepatic TB [20 (52.6%)]: (1) granulomatous hepatitis - 10 (26.3%), (2) liver abscesses or pseudotumors - 10 (26.3%) and (3) calcified hepatic granuloma - 0 (0%); (B) biliary TB [15 (39.4%)]: (1) biliary strictures - 2 (5.2%), (2) gall bladder involvement - 1 (2.6%) and (3) biliary obstruction due to lymph node masses - 12 (31.5%); (C) mixed variety [3 (7.8%)]: (1) simultaneous granulomatous hepatitis and biliary stricture - 1 (2.6%) and (2) simultaneous lymph node involvement and calcified hepatic granuloma - 2 (5.2%). All the cases responded well to standard anti-tuberculosis therapy. HBTB forms an important subgroup in TB cases. It requires a combination of imaging, histological and microbiological procedures to define the diagnosis. HBTB responds well to treatment.

Tuberculosis hepática primaria como causa de fiebre de origen desconocido / Primary liver tuberculosis as a cause of fever of unknown origin

Se presenta el caso de un paciente de 29 años de edad, quien se presentó con un cuadro de fiebre, sudoración nocturna y pérdida de peso, el que inicialmente fue catalogado como dengue clásico, pero que al persistir, fue abordado como fiebre de origen desconocido. Debido a que las pruebas de laboratorio y gabinete iniciales no fueron concluyentes, fue necesario realizar una laparotomía exploratoria para obtener material histológico en el que se demostraron granulomas caseosos en el hígado y formas similares a micobacterias con las tinciones especiales. Con el tratamiento antifímico, se observó una respuesta clínica favorable, por lo que se concluye que el cuadro corresponde a una probable TB hepática.

Micobacteriosis hepato-esplénica, forma inusual de probable tuberculosis extrapulmonar: Caso clínico y revisión bibliográfica / Hepatic-splenic micobacteriosis, unusual form of probable extrapulmonary tuberculosis: Case report and review

Reportamos el caso de un hombre de 42 años, seronegativo para VIH, con fiebre de origen desconocido (FOD), asociada a elevación de transaminasas y fosfatasas alcalinas con patrón colestásico e imágenes hepáticas hipodensas en la tomografía axial computada. La biopsia hepática demostró la presencia de granulomas tuberculosos con visualización de un bacilo con alcohol-ácido resistencia. El cuadro respondió al tratamiento con fármacos antituberculosos presentando caída de curva febril, mejoría del estado general y normalización de parámetros de laboratorio.

We report a 42 years old HIV negative male admitted for fever of unknown origin. Initial laboratory evaluation showed elevated hepatic transaminases and alkaline phosphatase and an hipodense hepatic imagen was visualized in the CT scan. Hepatic biopsy demonstrated tuberculous granulomas and alcohol fast acid rods with Ziehl Neelsen stain. Anti-tuberculous treatment resulted in resolution of fever, improvement of general condition and normalization of laboratory parameters.

Case report of lymph nodal, hepatic and splenic tuberculosis in an HIV-positive patient

We describe a case of a male patient, 38 years old, HIV-positive (most recent CD4 count about 259/mm³), with abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, weight loss, and vespertine high fever with chills. His hemogram showed normocytic and normochromic anemia, with a high erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and gross granulations in the neutrophils. Transaminases were normal. Bone marrow biopsy evidenced a chronic disease anemia pattern and a lack of infectious agents. Abdominal ultrasound examination showed a normal-size spleen, which exhibited heterogeneous parenchyma and multiple small hypoechoic images, together with small ascites, peripancreatic and para-aortic lymphadenopathy. These findings were confirmed by abdominal CT. The liver was normal in size, but had a hyperechoic image, which was not visualized on CT. Histopathological analysis of one of the multiple abdominal lymph nodes obtained by laparoscopic biopsy exhibited a chronic granulomatous inflammatory process, with caseous necrosis. Tissue sections were positive for BAAR (acid-alcohol-resistant bacillus), and the cultures were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Anti-tuberculosis treatment was begun, and the patient evolved with improvement of his general state, fever remission and weight gain. Splenic tuberculosis is a rare disease, occurring predominantly in patients in late stages of AIDS and/or disseminated tuberculosis. It is a difficult diagnosis, since there are no specific findings. Hence, complementary examinations, such as abdominal ultrasound/ CT, or fine needle aspiration, are usually necessary for investigation and differential diagnosis. Often, lesion regression after anti-tuberculosis regimens can be seen, and splenectomy is restricted to complicated or refractory disease.

Laparoscopic intervention in resistant hepatosplenic tuberculosis presenting as pyrexia of unknown origin.

Hepatosplenic tuberculosis (HST), rarely encountered in surgical practice, is seen in-patients with disseminated tuberculosis. A 20-year-old female presenting with pyrexia of unknown origin (PUO) was subsequently diagnosed to have lymph-nodal tuberculosis with involvement of liver and spleen. Despite anti-tuberculosis treatment (ATT) for 3 months, clinical improvement did not occur and fever persisted. Laparoscopic splenectomy and drainage of the hepatic cold abscess were done with favorable results. Smear for acid fast bacilli (AFB), culture for Mycobacterium tuberculosis and histopathological examination (HPE) established the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB).

Hepatic tuberculosis mimicking carcinoma gall bladder.

We report a 50-year-old man with tuberculosis of the liver with calculous cholecystitis. The diagnosis was made when the patient underwent cholecystectomy. He responded to antitubercular therapy.

Abdominal tuberculosis in adolescents. Difficulties in diagnosis

Since the nature of abdominal tuberculosis is mimicking a number of diseases, this may cause delayed diagnosis resulting in evident increased morbidity and mortality. Most of the time, serologic and bacteriologic tools are not enough. We report 3 adolescents with distinct presentations, one mimicking Crohn's disease, one with hepatitis, and the last one with ascites. Terminal ileitis and mesenteric lymphadenitis were found in laparotomy of the first case mimicking Crohn disease. Granulomatous hepatitis was found in the liver biopsy of the second patient, and peritonitis was found by laparoscopy of the third patient. Tuberculosis could be diagnosed merely by histopathologic investigation. All were treated successfully without complication

Tuberculoma hepatico: presentacion de casos y revision bibliografica / Hepatic tuberculoma: presentation of cases and literature review

El compromiso hepático por tuberculosis es una manifestación poco frecuente de dicha enfermedad, pudiéndose manifestar clínicamente de diferentes formas. Una de ellas es el tuberculoma hepático, el cual motiva nuestra presentación. Dado a que el tuberculoma hepático es poco común y los enfermos se presentan generalmente con síntomas inespecíficos, la sospecha diagnóstica sólo con la clínica del enfermo es infrecuente. El diagnostico de tuberculosis hepática generalmente es intra o postquirúrgico mediante el análisis de la muestra realizada por medio de una laparotomía o laparoscopía en el estudio de una masa hepática. Asimismo, tanto en los análisis de laboratorio como en los estudios por imágenes no hay hallazgos patognomónicos de dicha patología. El pilar principal del tratamiento es la terapia antituberculosa. Ocasionalmente se requieren intervenciones quirúrgicas o endoscópicas. El papel de la cirurgía en el tratamiento se reserva para algunas lesiones solitarias. Una vez instaurando el tratamiento adecuado su prognóstico es favorable. Se comunican 4 casos de tuberculoma hepático con diversidad en cuanto a su presentación clínica e imagenológica.

Clinical spectrum of hepatic tuberculosis: comparison between immunocompetent and immunocompromised hosts.

BACKGROUND: Hepatic tuberculosis has been reported in normal and immunocompromised hosts. However, no published comparisons between these two groups of subjects with hepatic tuberculosis have been found. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical manifestations, biochemical tests, radiologic features and pathological findings of hepatic tuberculosis in immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients. METHOD: The authors reviewed retrospectively 20 patients with hepatic tuberculosis admitted between January 1993 and October 2000 to Chulalongkorn University Hospital, Thailand. There were 12 immunocompromised patients (10 HIV-infected males, 1 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) male, 1 SLE female) and 8 immunocompetent patients (6 males, 2 females). The clinical manifestations, biochemical tests, radiologic features and pathological findings were compared between these 2 groups. The diagnosis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) was the combination of a demonstrated organism in hemo- or specimen culture, histopathology (positive acid fast bacilli) and rapid identification of M. tb from nested polymerase chain reaction (nPCR) assay based on amplification of the IS 6110 insertion sequences. RESULTS: The clinical features were similar in both groups with fever, weight loss and hepatomegaly as the main manifestations. The biochemical findings were also similar but the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) was significantly higher in the immunocompromised group (p < 0.001). Hepatomegaly and diffuse increased echogenicity were common in both groups. Ascitis and calcifications were found more commonly in the immunocompetent subjects, although the differences were not statistically significant. Non-caseating granuloma without detection of acid fast bacilli was a common finding in both groups. The nested PCR assay increased the sensitivity from 49 per cent to 86 per cent compared to the regular PCR assay but specificity was 100 per cent in both techniques. The mortality was significantly higher in immunocompetent patients (p < 0.05) due to the extreme age and severe coexisting diseases. CONCLUSION: Fever, weight loss, hepatomegaly, disproportionate elevation of ALP and reverse A/G ratio were common in hepatic tuberculosis. A disproportionate elevation of ALP was significantly higher in the immunocompromised hosts. Nested PCR assay showed good sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of this disease.

Hepatic sarcoidosis.

We describe six cases of hepatic sarcoidosis. Clinical presentation was with weight loss, hepatomegaly and abnormal liver function tests. In addition there was fever, itching, splenomegaly and abdominal lymphadenopathy in some. CT scan revealed mediastinal lymphadenopathy in all. Liver biopsy showed noncaseating epithelioid granulomas. Serum angiotensin converting enzyme was elevated in four cases. All patients had received anti-tuberculosis treatment with clinical diagnosis of hepatic tuberculosis. None of them improved, while some showed clinical deterioration. All patients responded to corticosteroids with disappearance of symptoms and normalization of liver function tests.

CT and MRI in the diagnosis of tuberculosis.

The advent of CT and MRI imaging in the last two decades has redefined the approach and analysis of various diseases including tuberculosis. Tuberculosis afflicts hollow and solid viscera. Genitourinary, hepatobiliary and adrenal tuberculosis is uncommon in children. CT and MRI have however shown several advantages over conventional radiology and other imaging modalities in early diagnosis and follow-up of tuberculosis in different parts of the body.

Hepatic tuberculosis--a case report.

Though abdominal tuberculosis is fairly common in our country, incidence of tuberculous hepatitis is rare. The authors reported a case who presented to the surgical OPD of the NRS Medical College, Calcutta with complaints of right upper quadrant abdominal pain, flatulent dyspepsia, nausea and occasional vomiting. Ultrasonography (USG) revealed fibrotic gall bladder without any calculus suggesting chronic acalculus cholecystitis. On exploration of the abdomen, the gall bladder was found to be fibrotic and thickened without any calculus. Multiple scarred nodules of different sizes were found in the liver. Cholecystectomy was done and a scarring nodule from the liver was taken for histopathological examination which revealed a tuberculous granuloma. Histopathology of the gall bladder showed cholesterosis. The patient responded to antituberculous drugs.

Solitary tuberculous abscess of liver.

Tuberculous liver abscess (TLA) is an extremely rare condition even in the country where tuberculosis is an alarming public health problem. Here a case of TLA is reported from Nepal with diagnostic and management principles and review of literature.