Tuberculosis of the thyroid: two case reports

Abstract

Tuberculosis of the thyroid gland occurs only rarely. Since extrapulmonary tuberculosis is now seen relatively more frequently the existence of this condition should be recognized. The cases of two patients with tuberculosis involving the thyroid are presented. The first, an Asian immigrant, presented with a painless goitre with no evidence of tuberculosis elsewhere. The second was an English woman who presented with hypothyroidism due to destruction of the thyroid by tuberculosis, and who subsequently died with disseminated tuberculosis; this is the only case to report the association between myxoedema and tuberculous thyroiditis. Other manifestations of thyroid tuberculosis and the pathological types are discussed.