[Difficulties in the diagnosis of a febrile exanthema of different etiologies in a tuberculous patient in Madagascar].

This article illustrates the difficulties in the treatment of tuberculosis through the case of a patient with tuberculosis presenting with a haemophagocytic syndrome, severe drug hypersensitivity and a dissemination of the disease. A month after tuberculosis chemotherapy was started, Mrs. R.S, aged 45 years, presented with febrile exanthema, confusion, multiple lymph nodes enlargement/polyadenopathy, bi-cytopenia and a severe hepatic cytolysis. The haemophagocytic syndrome was confirmed by a myelogram and had shown a good response to the administration of methylprednisolone. Tuberculosis chemotherapy was stopped for a month and when resumed, there was a recurrence of the febrile exanthema without haematologic abnormalities but a moderate hepatic cytolysis. The association of haemophagocytic syndrome with tuberculosis is a rare occurrence. It was important to differentiate drug hypersensitivity and recurrence of haemophagocytic syndrome, as the sole treatment interruption was sufficient to heal the patient during the second febrile rash. Corticotherapy, discontinuation of tuberculostatic treatment and a very progressive reintroduction of antituberculosis drugs was successful though it caused the dissemination of the tuberculosis disease.