Lung Cavities: Looking Beyond Tuberculosis
Abstract
The spectrum of infectious and non-infectious processes associated with pulmonary cavities is vast. In a high-prevalence country like ours, it is natural albeit presumptive, to jump to the diagnosis of Tuberculosis especially when the clinical case definitions of a ‘suspect’ attribute 2 weeks of fever and cough with suggestive radiology to it. We have described three cases that came to us with the clinical picture of sputum-negative tuberculosis and with a lung cavity on chest X-ray. None of the primary pathogens isolated in them was Mycobacterium. Through this short case series, we emphasise the larger point, the need to reach a microbiological confirmation and the realization that not all that cavitates is TB.
How to cite this article:
Sharma Y, Thakur D. Lung Cavities: Looking Beyond Tuberculosis. J Adv Res Med. 2022;9(2):12-17.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/2349.7181.202209
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