Diffuse reversed halo sign in an immunocompetent patient.

ABSTRACT

The reversed halo sign (RHS) is a specific radiological image observed mostly on computed tomography (CT) scans as a focal round area of ground-glass attenuation surrounded by a crescent or ring of consolidation. It is common to many entities of respiratory diseases and can be found in both infectious, noninfectious inflammatory pathologies and some malignant tumors, including invasive pulmonary fungal infection, tuberculosis (TB), community-acquired pneumonia, granulomatosis, sarcoidosis. It is also seen in pulmonary neoplasms and infarction, and following radiation and radiofrequency. We report the case of an immunocompetent 54-year-old North African male patient, initially hospitalized for chronic cough associated with dysphonia and general symptoms such as weight loss, fever, and night sweats. Radiological exploration surprisingly confirmed the presence of RHS, tuberculosis was confirmed by a postbronchoscopy positive sputum Xpert MTB/RIF essay tuberculosis after we started antibacillary treatment, and the evolution was spectacular with regression of the lesions. The objective of this report is to increase knowledge about RHS and its pathological correlation with TB. Since it is not specific to any disorder, it is important to explore its finding in a clinical and epidemiological manner, especially in endemic countries where the prevalence of tuberculosis is still high.