Oropharyngeal and miliary pulmonary tuberculosis without respiratory symptom

Abstract

Tuberculosis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality world-wide. We report the case of a 52-year-old man who presented with a two month history of sore throat without other general or respiratory symptoms. Oral ex- amination revealed ulcerative and granulomatous lesions on the soft palate and tonsils. Histological examination of the lesions showed granulomatous tissue with caseaous necrosis consistent with tuberculosis. A chest x-ray and computed to- mography of the chest showed miliary tuberculosis of both lungs. The oral lesions improved with antituberculous medication by one month. Tuberculosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of oral lesions which do not respond to appropriate antibiotic therapy. Pulmonary tuberculosis should also be considered in patients with oral tuberculosis even if they do not have respiratory symptoms.