Thyroid Tuberculosis: Case Report

Introduction: Thyroidal tuberculosis is a rare entity. The clinical presentation is not specific. The purpose of our observation is to underline the diagnostic problems posed by thyroid tuberculosis. Observation: We report a case of a 60 years old female patient with neck swelling related to a tuberculous infection, who received a anti-tuberculosis therapy. Discussion: This localization is often secondary, and exceptionally primary it is favored by advanced age, diabetes, malnutrition and HIV infection. The clinical presentation is not specific. It evolves in a chronic or subacute mode. The presence of another tuberculous localization concomitant allows to evoke the diagnosis. A thyrotoxicosis or hypothyroidism can be observed. The differential diagnosis includes, besides thyroid cancer, all other disorders of the gland. The appearance on imaging is not specific and the fine-needle aspiration cytology is only of value when it is positive. Only pathological examination confirms the diagnosis. The treatment is medical and surgical in case of complications. Conclusion: Thyroid tuberculosis is a differential diagnosis that should be considered in front of a cold nodule in a clinical or epidemiological evocative context.