Acute tuberculous pancreatitis associated with HIV infection

Pancreatic tuberculosis with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome: a case report and systematic review

Pancreatic tuberculosis (TB) is a relatively rare disease that can mimic carcinoma, lymphoma, cystic neoplasia, retroperitoneal tumors, pancreatitis or pseudocysts. Here, I report the case of a 31-year-old immigrant Burmese woman who exhibited epigastralgia, fever, weight loss and an epigastric mass. The patient was diagnosed with pancreatic TB and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, and was treated with antituberculous drugs and percutaneous catheter drainage without a laparotomy. The clinical presentation, radiographic investigation and management of pancreatic TB are summarized in this paper to emphasize the importance of considering this rare disease in the differential diagnosis of pancreatic masses concomitant with human immunodeficiency virus infection. I also emphasize the need for both histopathological and microbiological diagnosis via fine-needle aspiration.

Pancreatitis in HIV infection: predictors of severity

OBJECTIVES

Acute pancreatitis occurs at greater frequency in HIV-infected patients than in the general population. We set out to determine the frequency of severe acute pancreatitis in HIV-positive patients and to study the accuracy of The Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II), Ranson, and Glasgow scales for prediction of clinical disease severity.

METHODS

A total of 73 HIV-infected patients with acute pancreatitis were identified retrospectively. Demographic and clinical parameters as well as clinical outcomes were established. Sensitivities and specificities of the three scales mentioned above were calculated and compared.

RESULTS

Of the patients, 63 (83.6%) had AIDS. The majority of cases were medication-induced (46%) or idiopathic (26%). The incidence seemed to be declining in the late 1990s. Eleven patients (15%) had a severe course as defined by death, admission to the intensive care unit, or local complications requiring surgery. Eighteen case (24.6%) were considered severe as defined by the criteria established at the International Symposium on Acute Pancreatitis in Atlanta in 1992. APACHE II criteria best predicted outcome with an overall accuracy of 75% (Glasgow 69%, Ranson 48%). Maximal accuracy was achieved with cut-offs of 14 for APACHE II and 4 for the Glasgow and Ranson criteria.

CONCLUSIONS

HIV-infected patients have a clinical outcome similar to that of the general population. Clinical predictive scales are applicable and useful in this population.

Abdominal tuberculosis

Tuberculosis has staged a global comeback and forms a dangerous combination with AIDS. The abdomen is one of the common sites of extrapulmonary involvement. Patients with abdominal tuberculosis have a wide range and spectrum of symptoms and signs; the disease is therefore a great mimic. Diagnosis, mainly radiological and supported by endoscopy, is difficult to make and laparotomy is required in a large number of patient. Management involves judicious combination of antitubercular therapy and surgery which may be required to treat complications such as intestinal obstruction and perforation. The disease, though potentially curable, carries a significant morbidity and mortality.

The pancreas in AIDS

Although autopsy studies reveal significant pancreatic lesions in about 10% of AIDS patients, pancreatic lesions infrequently produce symptoms and are rarely recognized premortem. Patients with AIDS can develop pancreatic disease from causes not related to AIDS or AIDS-specific lesions. AIDS-specific causes include opportunistic infection, AIDS-associated neoplasia, and medications used to treat complications of AIDS. Pancreatic involvement is usually part of a widely disseminated tumor and rarely produces clinical symptoms.