Presenting Experience of Managing Abdominal Tuberculosis at a Tertiary Care Hospital in India

Background: Abdominal tuberculosis remains the great mimic despite years of experience and awareness. Reliable epidemiological data on abdominal tuberculosis are lacking in India. Objectives: To define the most suggestive clinical features of abdominal tuberculosis, to evaluate the usefulness of the normally available investigations, and the response of anti-tuberculous drugs. Study Design: Retrospective study. Materials and Methods: Out of 110 patients attending our hospital between July 2000 and June 2002, with clinical suspicion of abdominal tuberculosis, 46 patients had confirmed abdominal tuberculosis. Their clinico-radiological and cyto / histopathological profiles, side effects of anti-tuberculous drugs, and the outcome of the treatment were analyzed. Results: Weight loss, abdominal pain, and bowel disturbances were the most common symptoms. Anemia and under- nutrition, abdominal tenderness, ascites, and hepato / splenomegaly were the most common findings. Chest radiography showed active or healed tuberculous focus in 16. Ultrasonography revealed abdominal lymphadenopathy, ascites, and mass lesions in 26, 12, and four patients, respectively. Barium examination showed abnormality in eight patients out of 18, among whom it was performed. An ascitic fluid study done in 12 patients showed high adenosine deaminase in all, and positive acid fast bacilli in one. Laparoscopic peritoneal biopsy was done in18 patients, and 13 showed tuberculous granuloma. Treatment success was achieved in 38 patients with anti-tuberculous drugs. Most patients tolerated the anti-tuberculous drugs well. Conclusion: With good clinical examination and appropriate investigations definitive diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis can be reached in a significant number of patients. Strongly suggestive clinical and laboratory data are also indications for anti-tuberculous therapy in an endemic country like India. Anti-tuberculous drugs are well tolerated and highly effective

The role of induced sputum in the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis

Background: Microbiological confirmation of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is of paramount importance in the era of immunocompromised host and emergence of multi-drug resistance. Objectives: To assess the value of sputum induction (SI) with hypertonic saline nebulization as a diagnostic tool in patients with suspected pulmonary TB who have no/inadequate sputum or have a sputum smear negative for acid fast bacillus (AFB). Materials and Methods: One hundred patients with clinical and radiological evidence of pulmonary TB with no/inadequate sputum or smear negative with spontaneous sputum were studied. Sputum was induced with 20 mL of 3% hypertonic saline solution delivered through ultrasonic nebulizer. The specimens were subjected to Ziehl Neelsen staining and were examined under oil immersion lens for the presence of AFB. The specimens were also subjected to mycobacterial culture in BACTEC 460 TB system. Results: Ninety five patients could produce adequate sputum after SI. Sputum from thirty two patients were found to be positive both in smear and culture while sputum from another three patients were smear negative, but culture positive. Conclusion: SI is a safe, cheap and non-invasive procedure and provides significant yield in the diagnosis of pulmonary TB; thus, increasing the case detection rate of smear positive pulmonary TB

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura associated with pulmonary tuberculosis

Thrombocytopenic purpura as a manifestation of pulmonary tuberculosis is very rare. We report a case of 25-year-old female who presented with thrombocytopenia-induced purpuric spots and an abnormal chest X-ray. There was no hepatosplenomegaly while the bone marrow examination revealed normal maturation of myeloid and erythroid series with increased megakaryocytes. Acid fast bacilli were seen in the sputum microscopy. A diagnosis of sputum smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis along with immune thrombocytopenia was made. High dose intravenous immunoglobulin therapy along with antituberculous drugs corrected the thrombocytopenia and also cured pulmonary tuberculosis. This case report illustrates the causal association between immune thrombocytopenia and tuberculosis

Bifid sternum

A bifid sternum is a rare congenital anomaly generally diagnosed as asymptomatic at birth. It is sometimes associated with other congenital anomalies. The sternal defects are best corrected surgically during the neonatal period within the first month of life. Sometimes the defect may be diagnosed only in adult life. We here report a case of bifid sternum which was diagnosed incidentally in a 23-year-old male

A comparative study of efficacy and safety of arformoterol and salbutamol nebulization as rescue therapy in acute non-severe asthma

Arformoterol, a long-acting beta-2 agonist, has a rapid onset and long duration of action. Its role as rescue medication in acute asthma attack is undetermined. To compare the efficacy and tolerability of arformoterol with salbutamol nebulization, a study was conducted among 50 patients with acute non-severe asthma. Patients were randomly assigned to group 1 (n = 25) and group 2 (n = 25) who received three doses of salbutamol and arformoterol nebulization, respectively, at 20-min intervals. The peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) was measured at the baseline and 5 min after each dose. The demographics and baseline characteristics were comparable between the two groups. The mean PEFR significantly increased in both these groups when compared with the baseline. The increases in the PEFR in two groups were similar after the third dose. The adverse effects in both these groups were minor. Arformoterol was as effective and safe as salbutamol in acute non-severe asthma