A rare case of primary inoculation tuberculosis seen after varicella

Primary inoculation tuberculosis (TB) is a rare form of cutaneous TB resulting from direct introduction of Mycobacterium tuberculosis into the skin or mucosa of a previously uninfected, nonimmune person. We herein report the first case, to our knowledge, of primary inoculation TB to be seen after varicella; this case explains the possible mechanism of varicella-zoster virus-mediated transient cellular immune suppression that predisposed the patient to cutaneous TB. In this case, we believe that varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection predisposed the patient to primary inoculation TB by leading to direct inoculation of tuberculosis bacilli through vesicles or by suppressing cellular immunity.