Poncet's Disease Initially Managed as Osteoarthritis: Case Report From a Peripheral Centre in Kenya

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health challenge in Kenya. Though a multisystemic disease, some of the manifestations of tuberculosis such as Poncet's disease are rare and should be considered in patients presenting with symmetric polyarthritis in TB-endemic areas. We present a case of a 49-year-old male patient who presented with sub-acute ankle and foot swelling and was initially managed for osteoarthritis without improvement. At initial presentation, the history of constitutional features was equivocal, missing a potential opportunity to diagnose a systemic illness. On developing constitutional features of weight loss and fevers, a suspicion of tuberculosis was made, and a diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis confirmed on chest imaging and sputum Gene Xpert test. This case highlights the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion when dealing with patients with polyarthritis.