title: Scrotal tuberculosis in adult patients: a 10-year clinical experience.
abstract: Twenty-nine adults (mean age, 59.9 +/- 13.5 years) with scrotal tuberculosis (TB) were retrospectively analyzed. The mean interval from emergence of symptoms suggestive of scrotal TB to diagnosis established was 142.44 +/- 227.66 days. Scrotal TB was initially suspected in only five (17.2%) patients, and infection caused by bacteria other than Mycobacterium tuberculosis (55.2%) was the leading presumptive diagnosis. Of 28 patients with chest radiographs available, 7 (25%) disclosed active pulmonary TB, and 9 (32.1%) showed a TB scar. All patients received anti-TB chemotherapy; 20 (69%) additionally underwent surgery. Pathologic examination of resected tissue at therapeutic surgery, biopsy, or polymerase chain reaction assay of urine led to rapid diagnosis of scrotal TB. Although evidence of scrotal TB was easily obtainable, the lack of alertness made clinicians avert from the appropriate diagnostic approaches and rendered a delayed diagnosis. Our report underscores the urgent need for improving clinicians' awareness of scrotal TB.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital-Kaohsiung Medical Center, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ing-Kit
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Wen-Chou
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Jien-Wei
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012611:Scrotum / Q000382:microbiology*; D014389:Tuberculosis, Male Genital / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology / Q000652:urine; D014556:Urine / Q000382:microbiology