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Updated: Jul 24, 2025

Chronic Salmonella Infection Induced Intestinal Fibrosis
Published on: September 22, 2019
Intestinal tuberculosis can masquerade as Crohn's disease: A teachable moment
Pooja Kc1, Madhur Bhattarai2, Subodh Adhikari2
1Gandaki Medical College Teaching Hospital and Research Center, Pokhara, Nepal.
Abstract:
Intestinal tuberculosis and Crohn's disease are chronic granulomatous diseases with similar clinical presentations and can mimic one another. Their treatment modalities are completely different; however, sometimes it is challenging to differentiate them. We report a case of a 51-year-old female presenting with abdominal pain and on-and-off diarrhea for 4 years with weight loss. Clinical symptoms along with multiple aphthous ulcers in the terminal ileum and negative tuberculin test favored the diagnosis of Crohn's disease. The patient did not respond to steroids. A repeat colonoscopy with acid-fast bacilli stain showed Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This case highlights that acid-fast bacilli culture and tuberculosis polymerase chain reaction to confirm or rule out the diagnosis of intestinal tuberculosis in all patients suspected of Crohn's disease.
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