Thyroid tuberculosis: A case series and a review of the literature

Objective: Tuberculosis of the thyroid gland is a very rare disease. The incidence of extrapulmonary tuberculosis has been showing a progressive increase in the recent years. We present three cases of primary thyroid tuberculosis. Methods: Two cases were diagnosed on the basis of fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), as they presented with thyroid nodule. The third case was diagnosed on histopathology as the patient underwent total thyroidectomy for the left-side nodule which was a follicular lesion on FNAC. Tuberculosis was diagnosed on the other lobe. Results: All three patients were given antituberculous treatment for nine months, and their nodular lesions completely resolved after treatment. Conclusion: Although rare the, thyroid tuberculosis should be kept in mind in the differential diagnosis of thyroid masses, even in patient with no history and symptom of tuberculosis disease elsewhere.