Foot ulcer caused by multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a diabetic patient

Abstract

Osteoarticular tuberculosis is the fourth leading type of extrapulmonary tuberculosis. The disease has a progressive course and the diagnosis is often made in the later stages of bone destruction. We describe a case of a foot ulcer caused by drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a patient with known diabetes where the diagnosis was not suspected initially. Although tuberculous foot ulcers are rare, they should be included in the differential diagnosis of unknown foot ulcers. A greater awareness of this rare clinical entity may help in commencing specific evidence-based therapy quickly and preventing undue morbidity and mortality.