An Intriguing Case Report of Tuberculous Osteomyelitis of the Skull Base with Perineural Spread: Masquerading as Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Introduction

While tuberculosis has decreased significantly in developed countries due to the advent of public health measures and effective targeted antibiotic treatments, tuberculosis is still one of the most significant causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries [1]. Most tuberculosis cases are usually found among immigrants from high-endemic areas. Therefore, clinicians should be on constant vigilance for tuberculosis while treating patients who are from high-endemic areas. Since tuberculosis symptoms are usually nonspecific, diagnosing them is arduous. While tuberculosis involvement is most prevalent in the lung, it can occur in almost any organ or tissue. Extrapulmonary tuberculosis occurs in approximately 15% of tuberculosis patients, while bone involvement occurs in approximately 1% of cases [2]. Bone tuberculosis most often develops due to the hematogenous spread of pulmonary tuberculosis. Throughout our search in literature, skull base involvement has rarely been described in only limited cases [3]. Herein, we present a rare case of skull base osteomyelitis that develops six months after metatarsal osteomyelitis. This mass spreads from the nasopharynx to the skull base through the perineural foramen and extends to the brain.

Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 06. Oktober 2024

Angenommen nach Revision: 25. April 2025

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
02. Juni 2025

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