Resumen

Musculoskeletal tuberculosis is known for its ability to present in various forms and guises at different sites. Tubercular spinal epidural abscess (SEA) is an uncommon infectious entity. Its presence without associated osseous involvement may be considered an extremely rare scenario. We present a rare case of tubercular SEA in an immune-competent 35-year-old male patient. The patient presented with acute cauda equina syndrome and was shown to have multisegmental SEA extending from D5 to S2 vertebral level without any evidence of vertebral involvement on MRI. The patient made an uneventful recovery following surgical decompression and antitubercular chemotherapy. The diagnosis was confirmed by histopathological demonstration of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in drained pus. Such presentation of tubercular SEA has not been reported previously in the English language based medical literature to the best of our knowledge.

Palabras clave: Tuberculosis epidural abscess cauda equina syndrome laminectomy.

2011-10-06   |   306 visitas   |   Evalua este artículo 0 valoraciones

Vol. 5 Núm.7. Junio 2011 Pags. 544-549 J Infect Developing Countries 2011; 5(7)