Bilateral parotid gland tuberculosis: A rare occurrence

Abstract

Parotid gland tuberculosis is an extremely rare form of extrapulmonary tuberculosis, even in countries where tuberculosis is endemic like India; however, it should be included as one of the differentials of discrete parotid swelling as it generally presents as a slow-growing mass indistinguishable from a malignancy and even imaging too, can’t differentiate these clearly. The majority of the previously reported cases were mostly unilateral and diagnosed by histopathological examination of post parotidectomy specimens. Here we are describing a case of tuberculosis of both parotid glands in a 25 year-old male who was referred to us with bilateral parotid region swelling of two month duration. Tubercular parotiditis was confirmed by demonstration of epithelioid granuloma and caseous necrosis compatible with TB on fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC). He was treated with four drug anti-TB regimen (2HERZ + 4HR) leading to full recovery and complete disappearance of swelling and symptoms with no recurrence till one year of follow up. Apart from rarity due to bilateral involvement, this case report highlights the clinical presentation, ultrasonography and other imaging findings, and significance of FNAC in diagnosis of this uncommon entity reinforcing the fact that the diagnosis of parotid gland tuberculosis requires a high degree of clinical suspicion.