Imaging of Gastrointestinal Tuberculosis

Abstract

Gastrointestinal tuberculosis may manifest as an isolated disease or may occur as a part of disseminated disease. The most commonly afflicted region is the ileocecal junction, followed by the ascending colon, jejunum, appendix, duodenum, stomach, sigmoid colon, and rectum. As gastrointestinal tuberculosis has a wide spectrum of imaging features, knowledge of these imaging appearances on various imaging modalities enables the early diagnosis of tuberculosis in the appropriate clinical settings. Involvement of the ileocecal region with concomitant bowel lesions and necrotic lymphadenopathy is diagnostic of tuberculosis. Isolated involvement of the colon, stomach, duodenum, esophagus, and anorectum is rare; hence, the diagnosis requires a high degree of clinical suspicion. The role of the radiologist is in timely recognition of the imaging features of tuberculosis, so that further strategies can be planned to confirm the diagnosis and/or start appropriate anti-tuberculosis treatment.