Radiological and functional evidence of the bronchial spread of tuberculosis: an observational analysis.

Background: Direct bronchial spread of tuberculosis was extensively described in pre-antibiotic human pathology literature but this description has been overlooked in the post-antibiotic era, in which most pathology data come from animal models that emphasise the granuloma. Modern techniques, such as [F]2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) PET-CT scans, might provide further insight. Our aim was to understand normal early tuberculosis resolution patterns on pulmonary PET-CT scans in treated patients with tuberculosis who were subsequently cured.