Diagnosis by endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration of tuberculous lymphadenitis involving the peripancreatic lymph nodes: A case report

Pancreatic tuberculosis is an extremely rare form of extrapulmonary disease. The diagnosis preoperatively is difficult because clinical, laboratory and radiologic findings are nonspecific. Published data indicate that these lesions mimic cystic neoplasms of the pancreas and the confirmation of clinical suspicion could only be obtained by an open surgical biopsy. Recently, fine needle aspiration cytology has been shown to be a safe, reliable and cost-effective alternative. We report a new case of a peripancreatic tuberculosis in a 52 year old woman and review the relevant literature, paying special attention to the usefulness of endoscopic ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration in the diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis.