GENITAL TUBERCULOSIS IN A HIV-INFECTED WOMAN - A CASE-REPORT

The incidence of HIV-associated tuberculosis is increasing worldwide, especially in developing countries. HIV infected patients rapidly deve lop clinically significant disease, respond poorly to complete treatme nt and present with extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Although a relative i ncrease of genital tuberculosis would be expected, this has not been r eported. Probably, tuberculous systemic disease is diagnosed earlier, before genital tuberculosis occur. The present study is a report of ca se of a young African female patient, who was admitted with symptoms o f acute pelvic inflammatory disease due to genital tuberculosis and pr oved to be HIV infected. The patient was managed by intravenous antibi otic administration, but since no clinical or laboratory improvement w as achieved, a laparotomy and salpingooophorectomy was performed. Hist opathology revealed tuberculosis and after that the patient proved to be HIV infected. Further investigation did not reveal pulmonary or oth er extragenital manifestation of tuberculosis. The only manifestation of HIV infection and genital tuberculosis was the symptoms of an acute pelvic inflammatory disease, which is extremely rare. (C) 1998 Elsevi er Science ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.