Tuberculosis Verrucosa Cutis Confirmed by Culture / 대한피부과학회지

ABSTRACT

Tuberculosis verrucosa cutis is a warty form of cutaneous tuberculosis. It is a paucibacillary disorder caused by external reinfection of mycobacteria into the skin of previously sensitized individuals with moderate to strong cell-mediated immunity. Inoculation arises at sites of minor wounds, or rarely from the patient's sputum. Tuberculosis verrucosa cutis begins as a small papule and grows slowly by peripheral expansion, sometimes reaching a size of several centimeters or more in diameter. For definitive diagnosis of cutaneous tuberculosis, the demonstration of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is essential. However, the laboratory diagnosis of paucibacillary cutaneous tuberculosis is very difficult owing to the poor sensitivity of routine available methods. Herein, we report two cases of tuberculosis verrucosa cutis definitively confirmed by mycobacterial culture in Korean patients who had received bacille Calmette-Guerin vaccination earlier in life.