title: Cutaneous tuberculosis after mesotherapy: report of six cases.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cutaneous tuberculosis as a result of a needle injection is a rare event; it generally occurs among medical and laboratory personnel and among patients receiving percutaneous treatment.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Six patients are presented who developed cutaneous tuberculosis after mesotherapy cosmetic treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  One to four months after injection of an unknown product as treatment for obesity and cellulites, five women and a man developed papules, nodules and drainage of wax like material at the inoculated sites; this was interpreted clinically as a non tuberculous mycobacterium infection. Skin biopsies were taken for a histopathologic study; the biopsy and exudates were cultured to make a phenotypic identification. Polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme pattern analyses (PCR-restriction pattern analysis)) procedures were applied to the skin biopsies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mycobacterium tuberculosis was confirmed in the culture and by PRA analysis in the paraffin-embedded biopsies. The patients had never had tuberculosis. Their thoracic X rays were normal and the size of the tuberculin reaction was 17 to 20 mm. Five patients recovered with antituberculosis treatment and the sixth spontaneously healed after the removal of the largest cutaneous module. No satellite adenopathy or recurrences were observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A previously undescribed mode of acquisition cutaneous tuberculosis was described. This was the second incident of a demonstrated cutaneous tuberculosis following mesotherapy in Colombia. Skin lesions induced by injections must be tested to detect mycobacterias to include M. tuberculosis.
authors.affiliation: Grupo de Micobacterias, Instituto Nacional de Salud, Bogotá, DC, Colombia.
authors.forename: Dora
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Orjuela
authors.forename: Gloria
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Puerto
authors.forename: Graciela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mejía
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: María Consuelo
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Garzón
authors.forename: Luz Mary
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: García
authors.forename: Elkin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hernández
authors.forename: Wellman
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ribón
authors.forename: Gerzaín
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003105:Colombia; D003357:Cosmetic Techniques / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D057748:Mesotherapy / Q000009:adverse effects*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis; D014382:Tuberculosis, Cutaneous / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology