Tuberculosis (TB) is a multi-systemic, granulomatous disease caused by the bacilli Mycobacterium tuberculosis which is also known as Koch’s bacillus.
Primary Pulmonary Tuberculosis
1. Ghon focus or lesion: Subpleural fibro-caseous lesion of lung parenchyma (common site is upper part of lower lobe or lower part of upper lobe)
2. Ghon’s complex: Ghon focus + Surrounding lymph node involvement
3. Ranke complex: Calcification & Fibrosis of Ghon’s complex
Post-primary (Reactivation or Reinfection) Pulmonary Tuberculosis
1. Simon’s focus: Hematogenous spread to apex of upper lobe and resultant apical fibrosis
2. Assman focus: Infra-clavicular foci or infiltrates due to reactivation of Simon’s focus
3. Puhl’s lesion or nodule: Supra-clavicular foci (apical lung) lesion from re-infection
Miliary Primary Tuberculosis
1. Weigert focus: Subintimal caseating metastatic focus in pulmonary vein wall
2. Rich focus: Tuberculous granuloma in brain cortex that ruptures into subarachnoid space
3. Simmond’s focus: Tubercular foci in liver
Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis
1. Pott’s spine: Spine tuberculosis (Tubercular spondylitis)
2. Poncet’s disease: Aseptic reactive arthritis in patients with extrapulmonary tuberculosis
3. Koenig’s syndrome: Intestinal tuberculosis
Others
1. Rassmussen’s aneurysm: Pulmonary artery aneurysm adjacent to or within a tuberculous cavity
2. Langhan’s giant cells: Multinucleated giant cells in tubercular granuloma
3. Ziehl-Neelsen stain: Acid fast staining
4. Mantoux test: Screening tool for tuberculosis
Reference and further reading: Saldanha, Prema; Saldanha, Julian1. Eponyms in Tuberculosis. Archives of Medicine and Health Sciences 4(2):p 287-289, Jul–Dec 2016. | DOI: 10.4103/2321-4848.196199
