Open AccessOccult disseminated tuberculosis with holocord longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis: A rare phenomenon in a child
Author(s) -
Gülsüm Alkan,
Melike Emiroğlu,
Ayşe Kartal,
Harun Peru,
Mustafa Koplay
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of pediatric neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.247
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1998-3948
pISSN - 1817-1745
DOI - 10.4103/jpn.jpn_14_17
Subject(s) - medicine , transverse myelitis , occult , tuberculosis , differential diagnosis , myelitis , neuromyelitis optica , tuberculoma , spinal cord , lesion , dermatology , multiple sclerosis , radiology , surgery , pathology , immunology , alternative medicine , psychiatry
Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) is defined as an inflammatory lesion of the spinal cord that extends to three or more segments. LETM is a commonly characteristic feature of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) or various autoimmune diseases. Manifestation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection with LETM are rare and usually in the cervicothoracic spinal cord. Our patient presented with holocord LETM, so NMO was considered initially diagnosis. After in further research, MTB was diagnosed and treated successfully. The current case underscores that tuberculosis must be keep in mind when undertaking differential diagnosis of demyelinating diseases even in the absence of symptoms of infection, and especially in endemic regions.