Open AccessBiliary tuberculosis causing cicatricial stenosis after oral anti-tuberculosis therapy
Author(s) -
Tomohisa Iwai,
Mitsuhiro Kida,
Yoshiki Kida,
Nobuaki Shikama,
Akitaka Shibuya,
Katsunori Saigenji
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
world journal of gastroenterology
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.427
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 2219-2840
pISSN - 1007-9327
DOI - 10.3748/wjg.v12.i30.4914
Subject(s) - medicine , endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography , stenosis , tuberculosis , percutaneous , hilum (anatomy) , common hepatic duct , common bile duct , bile duct , caseous necrosis , radiology , surgery , gastroenterology , pathology , pancreatitis
A 36-year-old Philippine woman presented with dark urine and yellow sclera. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) confirmed dilatation of the intrahepatic bile ducts and also showed an irregular stricture of the common hepatic duct at the liver hilum. Histological examination of biopsies from the bile duct revealed epithelioid cell granulomas and caseous necrosis. Tubercle bacilli were then detected on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of the bile, giving the diagnosis of biliary tuberculosis. Although microbiological cure was confirmed, the patient developed cicatricial stenosis of the hepatic duct. She underwent repeated treatments with endoscopic biliary drainage (EBD) tubes and percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) tubes, and the stenosis was corrected after 6 years. We present a case of tuberculous biliary stricture, a condition that requires careful differentiation from the more common malignancies and needs long-term follow-up due to the risk of post-treatment cicatricial stenosis, although it is rare.