Hepatic tuberculosis: a multimodality imaging review

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Hepatology

Background:

• Hepatic tuberculosis (TB) presents a wide spectrum of imaging findings.
• Disseminated TB typically shows multiple small liver nodules.
• Isolated hepatic TB is rare but recognized.

Purpose of the Study:

• To illustrate the multimodal imaging spectrum of hepatic involvement in tuberculosis (TB).
• To highlight rare patterns of primary hepatic TB, including tubercular cholangitis and hypervascular masses.
• To differentiate TB from other hepatic lesions on imaging.

Main Methods:

• Review of imaging findings in patients with isolated and disseminated hepatic TB.
• Analysis of sonography, CT, and MRI features.
• Case-based illustration of diverse imaging patterns.

Main Results:

• Hepatic TB exhibits varied imaging manifestations, often confused with neoplastic lesions.
• Patterns include miliary TB, macronodular TB, serohepatic TB, and tubercular cholangitis.
• Concurrent splenic, nodal, or pulmonary involvement aids diagnosis.

Conclusions:

• Imaging is crucial for detecting and characterizing hepatic TB lesions.
• Imaging helps assess complications associated with hepatic TB.
• Histological or microbiological confirmation is often required.