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SPLENIC TUBERCULOSIS PRESENTING AS PYREXIA OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN
Author(s) -
FUNG WYE POH,
ONG SIEW CHEY,
LEE YOKE SUN
Publication year - 1973
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1973.tb110480.x
Subject(s) - tuberculosis , medicine , spleen , fever of unknown origin , splenectomy , pathology , surgery , immunology
A case of tuberculosis of the spleen in a patient who presented with pyrexia of unknown origin is reported. The patient was a 24–year‐old Chinese male who had had a high swinging fever for four months, marked iron‐deficiency anæmia and marked splenomegaly. There was no clinical or radiological evidence of tuberculosis in the lungs and the Mantoux test gave negative results. Routine investigations for bacterial and parasitic infections gave negative results. Indium scan of the spleen showed a large defect in the lower pole. The fever subsided with antituberculosis therapy and a splenectomy was performed. Extensive caseous tuberculosis was found in the spleen. Although tuberculosis of abdominal organs is rare, it should be considered in any case of pyrexia of unknown origin. Isolated tuberculosis of the spleen is an important though uncommon type of abdominal tuberculosis.