The Diagnosis of Esophageal Tuberculosis Through an Endoscopic Ultrasound-guided Fine-needle Aspiration Biopsy: A Case Study

Abstract

A 54-year-old woman presented with an elevated esophageal lesion. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a mass in the pancreatic head. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) showed a well-defined, round, hypoechoic mass, which was considered lymph node enlargement. An EUS-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) was performed on the esophagus and the mass above the pancreatic head. The pathologically confirmed epithelial cells and multinucleated giant cells were positive for T-SPOT. Clinically, tuberculous lymphadenitis and esophageal tuberculosis were suspected, with successful treatment with anti-tuberculosis therapy resulting in a good response. Our findings suggest that an EUS-FNAB is useful for diagnosing esophageal tuberculosis.