Tuberculosis: A Radiologic Review

Abstract

Tuberculosis has shown a resurgence in nonendemic populations in recent years, a phenomenon that has been attributed to factors such as increased migration and the human immunodeficiency virus epidemic. Although the thorax is most frequently involved, tuberculosis may involve any of a number of organ systems (eg, the respiratory, cardiac, central nervous, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, and genitourinary systems), and timely diagnosis of the disease is paramount, since delayed treatment is associated with severe morbidity. Unfortunately, a history of infection with or exposure to tuberculosis may or may not be present, and evidence of active tuberculosis is present in less than 50% of cases. A negative tuberculin skin test does not in itself exclude infection. Furthermore, the clinical and radiologic features of tuberculosis may mimic those of many other diseases. Therefore, although in many cases biopsy or culture specimens are required to make the definitive diagnosis, it is imperative that radiologists and clinicians understand the typical distribution, patterns, and imaging manifestations of tuberculosis.

A 6500-year-old Middle Neolithic child from Pollera Cave (Liguria, Italy) with probable multifocal osteoarticular tuberculosis

“…Burrill et al, 2007;Singh et al, 2009;Harishingani et al, 2010;Prapruttam et al, 2014;Elmi et al, 2013;Ye et al, 2016). At this stage of the research, it is difficult to determine whether this was due to different strains of the pathogen infecting the person, an effect of the host's immune response, or to environmental factors shaping how the pathogen affected the bones.…”

III Diretrizes para Tuberculose da Sociedade Brasileira de Pneumologia e Tisiologia

“…(28,29) HRCT In cases of SRD in which sputum smears are negative for AFB or in which patients are unable to produce material for mycobacteriology tests, HRCT can be indicated when chest X-ray findings are insufficient to establish a diagnosis. The principal alterations are air-space nodules or acinar nodules accompanied by linear ramifications, resulting in a tree-in-bud pattern.…”

The impact of coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus and pulmonary tuberculosis on the success of bronchial artery embolisation

“…However, the modality of imaging (namely chest radiography, HRCT scan or thicker-slice contrasted CT scan) must be considered to ensure that the results are not a reflection of the imaging limitations rather than actual incidence. LAP in HIV-negative patients who have post-primary TB may be underreported because the LAP is small and more difficult to detect on chest radiography than on CT scan [20]. It is technically more difficult to detect small LAP on HRCT than on contrast-enhanced thicker-slice CT chest.…”