Tubercular mastitis: An institutional experience from a tertiary care centre of northern India

Background: Tuberculous mastitis (TM) is a rare extra pulmonary presentation of tuberculosis. It may be problematic to distinguish from carcinoma breast, a condition with which it may coexist. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) / biopsy are indispensable for diagnosis and tuberculosis culture when positive may be very valuable to guide antimicrobial therapy.Aims and Objectives: To disseminate the message to the concerned expertise that it can present a diagnostic problem on radiological and microbiological investigations, and thus a high index of suspicion is needed.Materials and Methods: 19 cases of tubercular mastitis between January 2012 to March 2014 were identified and included in the present study. Cytology and biopsy alongwith AFB stain was done for confirmation.Results: Age ranged between 23- 55 years (median 33 years). Axillary nodes were palpable in 9 (47.3%) patients. Acid Fast Bacilli stain which was positive in only 3 patients. All the 19 patients were started on antitubercular treatment.Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of early diagnosis and aggressive medical and if required surgical management to cure this disease.Asian Journal of Medical Sciences Vol.8(3) 2017 72-75