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Published on: October 25, 2024
Tuberculosis - 'The great masquerader' presenting as a dumb-bell-shaped intradural extramedullary tumor in a
Mukunth Rajgopalan1, Amit Srivastava1, Ish K Dhammi1
1Department of Orthopaedics, University College of Medical Sciences & Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, Delhi 110095, India.
Abstract:
Tuberculosis has been known as the great masquerader for its varied presentations. We present an extraordinary case of a 20-year-old female who presented with paraparesis of two months. MRI showed an intradural, extramedullary dumb-bell-shaped, spinal cord tumor. With a provisional clinicoradiological diagnosis of benign nerve sheath tumor (schwannoma/neurofibroma), laminectomy was done. But after durotomy, frank pus was drained from the site of lesion and the laboratory investigations of the tissue and pus obtained proved it to be tubercular. This is a rare case reported in the literature where tuberculosis is mimicking as a dumb-bell-shaped, spinal cord tumor.
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