Primary Mucocutaneous Tuberculosis of Nose: One Decade Study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background Primary mucocutaneous tuberculosis of nose is extremely rare even in countries with high incidence of pulmonary tubercular disease. The clinicians fail to diagnose its symptoms as primary nasal tuberculosis and, therefore, its treatment is often delayed. Objective To elucidate the clinical features and discuss the diagnostic difficulties, management and outcome of primary mucocutaneous tuberculosis of nose. Materials and methods A retrospective chart review of five cases of primary mucocutaneous tuberculosis of nose was done over a period of 10 years. The clinical and imaging data, treatments, and outcomes were analyzed in these patients. Results Out of five patients of primary mucocutaneous tuberculosis of nose studied during a decade, four were females. The mean age at the time of diagnosis was 24.2 years (12–60 years). The most common presenting symptoms were progressive nasal obstruction, recurrent epistaxis, skin ulceration. All the patients had no signs of pulmonary tuberculosis. All patients had nasal endoscopic guided biopsy for the accurate diagnosis based on histopathology. Biopsy was positive in all the five cases confirming the diagnosis. All the five patients received antitubercular therapy for a period of 6 to 9 months. There was successful response to antitubercular drug treatment. The follow-up for 2 to 7 years showed no relapse, dissemination or death. Conclusion Primary nasal tuberculosis is a very rare disease. However, it is important to have a high index of suspicion for nasal tuberculosis in patients presenting with nasal obstruction, epistaxis and skin ulceration especially in countries with high prevalence of tuberculosis. How to cite this article Gupta Y, Sinha R. Primary Mucocutaneous Tuberculosis of Nose: One Decade Study. Int J Head Neck Surg 2015;6(2):69-72.