A successfully treated case of miliary tuberculosis with adult respiratory distress syndrome and tuberculous aneurysm of abdominal aorta
Ishibatake, H.; Onizuka, R.
Kekkaku 73(6): 403-411
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 0022-9776 PMID: 9695483 Document Number: 488192
A 52-year-old woman visited a physician on Oct. 17, 1995 because of dizziness, general fatigue and a slight fever. A Chest X-ray film showed micronodulous and infiltrative shadows in the bilateral upper lung fields. Liver dysfunction was also recognized. As dyspnea and hypoxemia progressed very rapidly, the patient was intubated and kept under mechanical ventilation. A diagnosis of miliary tuberculosis with adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was made based on the detection of acid-fast bacilli from sputum obtained from the endotracheal tube. She was admitted to our hospital on Oct. 24, 1995 receiving anti-tuberculous drugs combined with high-dose methylprednisolone. As disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and acute pancreatitis also developed, gabexate mesilate was added to the preceding therapy. This combination therapy was effective and the patient gradually improved. Two months after the admission, aneurysms of the abdominal aorta and left renal artery were discovered. As the size of the aneurysms had been increasing along with abdominal and low back pain, the patient was transferred to an other hospital for surgical treatment. She underwent a successful operation for pseudoaneurysms, the etiology of which was tuberculosis according to pathological findings and detection of acid-fast bacilli from the resected specimens. This is the 10th case of tuberculous aneurysm of the aorta which was successfully operated on in Japan. ARDS, DIC and aneurysm occur rarely as complications of miliary tuberculosis, but they are life-threatening, and lead to a serious prognosis if untreated. Early diagnosis of miliary tuberculosis and tuberculous aneurysm is very important for a good outcome.