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Disseminated tuberculosis - Symptom

Alternative Names

Miliary tuberculosis; Tuberculosis - disseminated; Extrapulmonary tuberculosis

Symptoms:

The primary infection usually has no symptoms.

Symptoms of disseminated tuberculosis include:

Cough
Fatigue
Fever
General discomfort, uneasiness, or ill feeling (malaise)
Shortness of breath
Sweating
Weight loss

Other symptoms that can occur with this disease:

Abdominal swelling
Chills
Joint pain
Pale skin due to anemia (pallor)
Swollen glands

Note: The symptoms will depend upon the affected areas of the body.

Signs and tests:

A physical exam may show:

Tests for TB include:

Biopsies and cultures of affected organs or tissues
Bronchoscopy for biopsy or culture
Chest x-ray
CT scan of the affected area
Fundoscopy may reveal retinal lesions
Lung biopsy
Mycobacterial culture of bone marrow or blood
Pleural biopsy
Sputum cultures
Tuberculin skin test

This disease may also alter the results of the following tests:

Complete blood count (CBC)
Peripheral blood smear
Blood calcium level

Reviewed last on: 12/7/2010
David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; Jatin M. Vyas, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor in Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Assistant in Medicine, Division of Infectious Disease, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Iseman DE. Tuberculosis. In: Goldman L, Ausiello D, eds. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007: chap 345.

Fitzgerald DW, Sterling TR, Haas DW. Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In: Mandell GL, Bennett JE, Dolan R, eds. Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett’s Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. 7th ed. Orlando, FL: Saunders Elsevier; 2009:chap 250.

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