Renocolic Fistula Secondary to Tuberculosis: A Case Report

Abstract

Background: Renocolic fistula secondary to tuberculosis has become rare in recent years. The availability of tuberculosis medication and the global campaign towards it’s eradication has immensely contributed to this result. The management of renocolic fistula is essentially surgical comprising of a nephrectomy and a resection of the affected segment of the colon. The underlying cause of the fistula needs to determined and must be treated appropriately in order to secure the health of the patient.
Case presentation: We present the case of a 75-year-old Moroccan man who was admitted to our department for perirenal abscess associated with a renocolic fistula. He had a 2 month history of left low back pain, intermittent fever and progressive weight loss. The diagnosis of this patient was established with the help of an abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan. A biopsy of a suspected mass on the CT scan was performed during colonoscopy. Histopathological revealed Tuberculosis (TB) as being the underlying cause of this affection.
Conclusion: Renocolic fistula secondary to TB has recently become rare with no specific clinical and radiological features that allow an easy and sure diagnosis. We therefore present this case report with the view of adding a new and recent case to the English literature. In addition, we will discuss how to best establish diagnosis and manage this disease.