A rare neurological complication of tuberculosis: Transverse myelitis

Abstract

Acute transverse myelitis is a rare inflammatory demyelinating disorder characterized by relatively acute onset of motor, sensory, and autonomic dysfunction. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a very rare cause of transverse myelitis. We present a patient with tuberculosis presenting with meningitis and transverse myelitis who had marked clinical improvement and neurologic recovery after treatment of tuberculosis and intravenous steroid pulses.

Keywords: Neurological tuberculosis; Transverse myelitis; Tuberculosis.

Fig. 1

Cerebral MRI presenting a right cerebellar nodule compatible with a tuberculoma. Note that the lesion was not observed on the cerebral CT scan.

Fig. 2

MRI of spinal cord revealed intramedullary T1, T2 and STIR hyper intense signals extending from T7 to T9 segments, showing greater hyper intensity at central level in an extension of 1.4 × 0.57 cm and a slight widening in this region.