Assessment of Cavitary Pulmonary Tuberculosis in Children

Abstract

Background: Cavitary pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is rare in children. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of cavitary pulmonary TB in children. Patients and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted on 97 children less than 15 years old with pulmonary TB to assess the clinical characteristics and radiographic findings of patients with cavitary lesions. Results: Seven (7%) out of 97 children had cavitary pulmonary TB. All patients were between 13 and 14 years old with a female/male ratio of 2.5/1. The most common symptom was cough. All patients had positive sputum smear results. Cavitary lesions were seen in the right upper lobe in six cases and multiple cavities were observed in two cases. Conclusions: This finding strongly suggests that older children with pulmonary TB can be more at risk than younger ages. Special attention must be paid to the prevention and treatment of TB in older children, particularly females.

Prevalence, radio-clinical patterns and factors associated with pulmonary tuberculosis among children with severe acute malnutrition: A crossectional study in Uganda

“…The distribution of radiological ndings observed in this study contrasts with those reported by Hassanzad et al (23) and ndings from Brie ands (24). While our study found a lower prevalence of cavitary lesions (0%), both Hassanzad et al and Brie ands reported the presence of cavitary lesions in a subset of children with pulmonary tuberculosis.…”

“…According to Brie ands, cavitary pulmonary tuberculosis typically seen in adults, is rare in children, which aligns with our ndings of no cavitary lesions observed in the studied population. However, the presence of cavitary lesions in other studies indicates a higher mycobacterium load, serving as a potential source of infection (24). This discrepancy underscores the variability in disease presentation across different populations and highlights the importance of considering regional and demographic factors when interpreting radiological ndings in pediatric tuberculosis.…”