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CASE REPORT
Isolated hepatobiliary tuberculosis: a diagnostic challenge
  1. Sathish Kandasamy1,
  2. Ramkumar Govindarajalou2,
  3. Sunitha Vellathussery Chakkalakkoombil2,
  4. Prasanth Penumadu3
  1. 1 Department of Neuroradiology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
  2. 2 Department of Radiodiagnosis, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education, Pondicherry, Pondicherry, India
  3. 3 Department of Surgical Oncology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, Puducherry, India
  1. Correspondence to Dr Sunitha Vellathussery Chakkalakkoombil, drsunithapnair{at}rediffmail.com

Summary

Hepatobiliary system involvement is frequently seen as part of disseminated tubercular infection. But primary isolated hepatobiliary tuberculosis with no evidence of tuberculosis elsewhere in the body is extremely rare. Isolated hepatobiliary tuberculosis can cause diagnostic dilemma as the clinical, laboratory and imaging features are non-specific in majority of the cases. We report the case of a 50-year-old woman who presented with hepatobiliary tuberculosis with no pulmonary or extra hepatic involvement. Liver function tests were abnormal and ultrasonography (USG), CT and MR cholangiopancreatography showed multiple focal lesions in the liver. The diagnosis of tuberculosis was confirmed by a USG-guided biopsy of the liver lesions. In endemic regions with the presence of supportive imaging findings, in the appropriate clinical setting, the possibility of hepatic tuberculosis should be considered and diagnosis has to be confirmed with histopathological examination.

  • infectious diseases
  • hepatitis and other GI infections

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Footnotes

  • Contributors SK: data acquisition and drafting of manuscript. RG: revision, editing and final approval of manuscript. SVC: concept of manuscript, analysis and interpretation of data, revision and final approval of manuscript. PP: revision of manuscript and final approval of manuscript.

  • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Patient consent Obtained.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.