Diagnostic Challenges and Prospects Associated With Zoonotic Tuberculosis of Central Nervous System

Introduction: the diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis (tbm) has remained a challenge due to its insidious onset and the failure of conventional diagnostic tests. the present study aimed to identify the mycobacterial pathogen in the csf of patients with tbm and a poor prognosis. methods: we retrospectively recruited 224 tbm and 34 non-tbm patients admitted to the central india institute of medical sciences, nagpur, india, in 2014. the csf samples of these patients were subjected to a duplex pcr assay for the species-specific identification of the causative pathogen. results: m. bovis and infection with m.tuberculosis were detected in 7% (18) and 32.9% (85) of the patients, respectively. moreover, 14% (36) of the study samples were culture positive; however, the mycobacterial pathogens could not be differentiated to the species level. conclusion: the present study findings emphasized the potentially vital importance of m. bovis identification for appropriate patient management. the obtained data also demonstrated the persistent significance of m. bovis, as a zoonotic pathogen.