A physician at Mustansiriyah University’s College of Medicine has published a rare case study detailing tuberculosis presenting as migratory arthritis in a leading medical journal.
By Sharif Hashem – Baghdad
The Clinical Case Reports journal featured a report, published in the March 2026 issue (Volume 14, Issue 3), detailing a rare presentation of tuberculosis. The case study was prepared by Dr. Farah Jaafar Mahdi, a lecturer in the Department of Internal Medicine at the College of Medicine/Mustansiriyah University, specializing in joint diseases, rheumatology and medical rehabilitation. She collaborated with researchers from the Faculty of Medicine at Alexandria University – Egypt, the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Baghdad, the Neurology and Muscle Center in Texas – USA, the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Bahri – Sudan, the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Khartoum – Sudan, and Hackensack Meridian Health/Recent Jersey – USA.
Researchers noted that extrapulmonary tuberculosis is a rare condition, and musculoskeletal involvement manifesting as migratory arthritis is particularly uncommon, especially in individuals with healthy immune systems. This rarity often leads to misdiagnosis and delayed treatment.
The case involved a 66-year-ancient man with diabetes who experienced recurrent migratory arthritis affecting multiple joints over the course of a year. Initially, he showed no respiratory symptoms and was provisionally diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis based on the presence of rheumatoid factor and elevated inflammatory markers. He was treated with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs without clinical improvement.
Upon further evaluation, the patient reported severe shoulder pain, morning stiffness, weight loss, and night sweats. Imaging revealed an infiltrate in the right upper lobe of the lung and an active cavitary lung lesion. A bronchial lavage culture confirmed the presence of tuberculosis bacteria, and anti-tuberculosis treatment was initiated, leading to significant clinical improvement and resolution of the arthritis within weeks.
The case study concludes that tuberculosis should be considered a significant, yet often overlooked, cause of migratory arthritis. It emphasizes the importance of considering infectious causes in the evaluation of inflammatory joint diseases that are resistant to treatment, particularly in endemic areas.
Clinical Case Reports is indexed in Scopus.
To view the research: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ccr3.72238
تابعوا آخر أخبار موقعنا على
