[Bouchut tubercles and AIDS. Apropos of 3 cases]

Tuberculosis choroidal granulomas ("tubercules de Bouchut") are rare, even in patients with AIDS and active tuberculosis. The authors report the clinical and angiographical findings of three cases. Choroidal involvement was bilateral, with multiple lesions, mostly located at the posterior pole. The size of the granuloma ranged from 1/8 to 1/2 of a disc diameter. Fluorescein angiography showed early prolonged hypofluorescence and late moderate hyperfluorescence. The lesions remained stable for months despite treatment of tuberculosis, and then gradually subsided. In two cases, the choroidal granulomas were discovered before the diagnosis of disseminated tuberculosis and guided the investigations, which allowed the identification of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis bacillus in the body. In the third case, pulmonary tuberculosis had already been diagnosed. The number of tuberculosis cases is increasing together with the number of AIDS cases. This should make the observation of tuberculosis choroidal granulomas more frequent. The discovery of the typical aspects of granulomas described above during fundus examination of AIDS patients can help in diagnosing tuberculosis.