Premium
Tuberculosis of the Nasopharynx: A Rare Entity Revisited
Author(s) -
Tse Gary M. K.,
Ma Tony K. F.,
Chan Amy B. W.,
Ho Fio. Y.,
King Ann D.,
Fung Kitty S. C.,
Ahuja Anil T.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
the laryngoscope
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.181
H-Index - 148
eISSN - 1531-4995
pISSN - 0023-852X
DOI - 10.1097/00005537-200304000-00027
Subject(s) - medicine , tuberculosis , cervical lymphadenopathy , pathological , cervical lymph nodes , surgery , biopsy , retrospective cohort study , presentation (obstetrics) , dermatology , radiology , pathology , disease , cancer , metastasis
Objectives Tuberculosis of the nasopharynx is uncommon. A large series of 17 cases is reported, and the clinical and pathological features are discussed. Study Design A retrospective review. Methods Seventeen archived cases of biopsy‐proven nasopharyngeal tuberculosis were reviewed for patient age and sex, presenting complaint and duration, systemic symptoms, cervical lymphadenopathy, and chest x‐ray findings. These findings were compared with a compilation of 40 cases reported in the English literature. Results There was a female predominance (13 women and 4 men), with age range of 20 to 74 years (mean age, 38 y). The most common presentation was enlargement of the cervical lymph nodes (53%), followed by hearing loss (12%), tinnitus, otalgia, nasal obstruction, and postnasal drip (6% each). The duration of the presenting symptoms ranged from 1 week to 1 year (mean duration, 16 wk). Ten patients (59%) had cervical lymphadenopathy, two (12%) had systemic symptoms (fever, weight loss, night sweats), and one patient (6%) had miliary pulmonary tuberculosis. Direct endoscopic examination showed nasopharyngeal mucosal irregularity or mass in the majority of patients (12 patients [70%]). These features were similar to those reported in the literature. Conclusions Nasopharyngeal tuberculosis is uncommon, usually occurring without pulmonary or systemic involvement. Cervical lymphadenopathy occurs in more than half of the patients and is the most common presenting complaint; this, together with the nasopharyngeal findings of mass or mucosal irregularity, makes differentiation from carcinoma on clinical examination difficult, necessitating histological evaluation.