Tuberculosis of the spine (Pott's disease) in patients with end-stage renal disease.

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis is more common in end-stage renal disease than in normal subjects, and it frequently poses both diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. We describe 2 dialysis patients with tuberculosis of the spine (Pott's disease). The 1st patient presented with back and left hip pain, low-grade fever, left-quadriceps weakness, hypoesthesia of the left thigh, and hypoactive left-knee jerk. X-rays of the spine showed only osteophytes. Magnetic resonance imaging showed increased signal intensity of L3 with focal expansion into the spinal canal. A computerized tomography guided biopsy revealed granulomas, and Ziehl-Neelsen stain was positive. Therapy with rifampin, isoniazid, ethambutol, and pyrazinamide caused peripheral neuropathy and optic neuritis. The 2nd patient developed bilateral proximal thigh pain and weakness that progressed to paraplegia. Magnetic resonance imaging showed destructive lesion of L3-5, involving both psoas muscles, prevertebral space, and neural foramina. Ziehl-Neelsen stain of the biopsy specimen was negative, but culture was positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Paraplegia improved only partially after 1 year of therapy. Pott's disease should be suspected in end-stage renal disease patients with back pain and/or neuromuscular complaints, particularly in those who immigrated from Asian and Latin-American countries. Treatment of tuberculosis in dialysis patients may cause significant morbidity.