A case of intestinal tuberculosis accompanying duodenal lesions

A 47-year-old woman with the chief complaints of anemia and diarrhea was admitted. At endoscopic examination she was found to have multiple duodenal ulcerations with conspicuous converging folds ranging from the descending to the horizontal segment of the duodenum without stenosis. On the basis of bacteriological and biopsy findings, she was diagnosed to have tuberculosis accompanied by duodenal lesions. A review of the Japanese literature revealed the followings: 1) 70% of the reported cases of duodenal tuberculosis had marked duodenal stenosis, 2) as many as 83% of them had to undergo surgical treatment, and 3) the deagnostic accuracy of biopsy was only 35%. Our case was a rare one without evident stenosis that a correct diagnosis could be made by biopsy and well responded to medical treatment.