Tuberculosis treatment failure in AIDS: Vengeance with renal and ocular manifestations

Abstract

Tuberculosis treatment failure is not uncommon in patients with AIDS. Treatment failure is defined as a positive sputum smear or culture at month 5 or later in the course of the treatment. The clinical presentations in these patients show remarkable heterogeneity. In this report, we chronicle the case of a patient with treatment failure presenting as the disseminated disease, specifically ocular and renal tuberculosis. Additionally, we undertake here a brief literature review highlighting the increased resistance to tuberculosis treatment in patients with AIDS, the rarity of ocular tuberculosis and the importance of tailoring drug regimens on an individual basis in these coinfected patients.