Laryngo-pharyngeal Tuberculosis

Factors Associated with Clinical and Topographical Features of Laryngeal Tuberculosis

Introduction

Laryngeal tuberculosis (LTB) is the most frequent granulomatous disease of the larynx and represents less than 2% of extrapulmonary TB cases. There are no pathognomonic clinical and endoscopic features of this disease and studies on LTB that can assist in its diagnostic characterization are lacking.

Objective

To identify factors associated with clinical and topographical features of LTB.

Method

a retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted from the medical records of 36 patients with confirmed LTB diagnosis.

Results

Dysphonia and cough were the main symptoms presented by patients and the true vocal folds the most frequently affected site. The average of the duration of the disease evolution was significantly higher in patients with dysphonia than in patients without this symptom. We observed association between dysphonia and true vocal fold lesions and between odynophagia and lesions in the epiglottis, arytenoids and aryepiglottic folds. Odynophagia was more frequent in individuals with lesions in four or more laryngeal sites. Weight loss equal or above 10% of the body weight was more frequent in patients with odynophagia as first symptom and in patients with ulcerated lesion. Dyspnea on exertion was more frequent in individuals with more extensive laryngeal lesions. The percentage of smokers with lesions in four or more laryngeal sites was greater than that found in non-smokers. Laryngeal tissue fragment bacilloscopy and culture examinations were less positive than sputum ones.

Conclusions

Smoking appears to be associated with the development of more extensive LTB lesions, and LTB with dyspnea on exertion and odynophagia with consequent impairment of nutritional status. We emphasize the need for histopathologic confirmation, once positive sputum bacteriological examinations seem not to necessarily reflect laryngeal involvement.

Primary pharyngeal tuberculosis presenting as a submucosal tumour

We describe a rare case of primary pharyngeal tuberculosis without pulmonary involvement in which the lesion was thought to be a submucosal tumour with overlying intact mucosa. A 58-year-old male attended the outpatient ward due to a globus sensation in the throat of 2-month duration. A swelling of the posterior oropharyngeal wall was found. The lesion was thought to be a submucosal tumour on computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Primary pharyngeal tuberculosis was confirmed by histopathological examination and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis. The patient underwent 26 weeks of treatment with anti-tuberculous agents. He has been followed up for 12 months without any signs of disease recurrence.

Nasopharyngeal tuberculosis: CT and MRI findings in thirty-six patients

PURPOSE

Tuberculosis is uncommon in the nasopharynx. The purpose of this study was to investigate the CT and MRI features of 36 cases of tuberculosis in this area.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

CT (n=15) and MRI (n=21) scans from 36 patients with histologically proved tuberculosis of the nasopharynx were reviewed by two experienced radiologists, paying particular attention to the lesions' distribution, location, extent, size, internal architecture, pattern, and degree of enhancement, and cervical lymphadenopathy.

RESULTS

Twenty-nine patients exhibited a polypoid mass pattern and seven had diffuse mucosal thickening. The roof of the nasopharynx was involved in all cases. The mean size of the lesions was 11.4mm. Striped pattern was detected in 19 cases. Adjacent muscle invasion or bone destruction was not detected. Heterogeneous enhancement was detected in all patients, and necrosis in the nasopharyngeal lesions was detected in 16 cases. Poor, moderate, and marked enhancement was detected in one, 27, and eight cases, respectively. Thirty-four patients had involvement of the cervical lymph nodes. Twenty-two and 28 cases were associated with bilateral lymphadenopathy or necrosis, respectively. The retropharyngeal lymph node was the most commonly involved site (94.1%).

CONCLUSION

The presence of necrosis and striped pattern in nasopharyngeal lesions, site predilection, no invasion of regional structures, and central necrosis with peripheral rim enhancement of cervical lymphadenopathy may suggest the diagnosis of nasopharyngeal tuberculosis.

Primary laryngeal tuberculosis mimicking laryngeal carcinoma: CT scan features

Laryngeal tuberculosis is a rare disease. It is almost always associated with pulmonary tuberculosis. It occurs generally in adults without BCG vaccination or in cases of the acquired immune deficiency syndrome. On laryngoscopy and imaging, it often simulates laryngeal carcinoma, and confirmation is always histological. We report the case of a 36-year-old man who presented to our hospital with dysphonia and dysphagia. Laryngoscopy revealed a lesion of the left vocal cord and the ventricular strip. CT scan found focal, regular thickening of the left vocal cord, associated with irregular thickening of the posterior laryngeal wall. A biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of tuberculosis.

18F-FDG PET/CT findings of pharyngeal tuberculosis

A 58-year-old woman with dysphagia and hoarseness underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT to detect the original lesion and disease spread. Bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy and abnormal FDG uptakes in the right tonsil and pharyngeal wall were demonstrated. CT and MRI confirmed the bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy and mucosal thickening in the pharyngeal wall. On the basis of these findings, biopsy sites were selected. Pharyngeal tuberculosis was diagnosed based on culture of the biopsy specimens. 18F-FDG PET/CT contributed to clinical management in this case by detecting tuberculous lesions and showing the extent of these lesions in one examination.