[Female genital tuberculosis in Tunisia. Apropos of 118 cases at the Rabta Neonatology and Maternity Center in Tunis (January 1984-December 1988)].

The authors have reviewed 118 cases of female genital tuberculosis collected over a 5 year period, from 1st January 1984 up until 31 December 1988, and have compared their results (study group, SG) with those of a similar study (reference group, RG) carried out in the same centre 2 years previously. The following points stand out: the incidence of the disease is stable (6.6 p. cent in the SG versus 5.6 p. cent in the RG); the profile of the woman with genital tuberculosis is that of a young woman of rural origin, generally unvaccinated; sterility is increasingly the predominant motive for consultation (81 p. cent in the SG versus 73 p. cent in the RG); the latent form of genital tuberculosis constitutes 96.4 p. cent of cases in their series versus 93.8 p. cent in the RG; the diagnosis of genital tuberculosis was confirmed histologically in 46 p. cent of cases versus 30 p. cent in the RG, and bacteriologically in 7 p. cent of cases versus 4 p. cent in the RG; medical treatment was initiated for the acute and evolutive forms (35 p. cent of cases). Surgical treatment was indicated for macro-lesional forms which were resistant to medical treatment.