Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is clinically divided into two categories: pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB). PTB has many different manifestations, and sometimes the initial diagnosis is challenging and depends on the prevalence of infection as well as the experience and development of local medical centers. Thus, we aimed to review all EPTB patients in our referral center.
Materials and Methods: This retrospective study reviewed all confirmed cases of EPTB referred to a referral/general center within the last decade.
Results: This study included 68 cases of EPTB. Percentages of males and females were 58.8% and 41.2%, respectively. The majority of EPTB patients were TB meningitis (44.1%), followed by musculoskeletal TB (17.6%). About 8.8% of patients had a positive culture. The acid-fast bacilli test was found to be positive in 19.1% of cases. The mortality rate in this study was 19.1% and the highest rate of mortality was observed in intestinal and mesenteric TB (33.3%).
Conclusion: According to this study, the majority of hospitalized EPTB patients had TB meningitis. The mortality rate in intestinal and mesenteric TB was higher compared to other types of EPTB, probably due to delayed diagnosis. In the current study, Positive results for smears and cultures were also low.