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Tuberculosis of eyelid skin
Last reviewed: 17.10.2021
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Tuberculosis of the eyelid skin can occur with exogenous and hematogenous infection.
Tuberculosis of the eyelid skin is rare. In case of exogenous infection, mycobacterium tuberculosis falls on the skin from the environment. The entrance gates of the infection can be cracks, abrasions, maceration of the skin's epithelium. In the literature, cases of skin tuberculosis without violation of its integrity are described. At the site of infection, a typical tuberculosis granuloma with a tendency to necrosis, caseous involvement of regional lymph nodes in the process (the primary complex) arises.
More often the tuberculosis of the skin of the eyelids serves as a manifestation of tuberculosis of multiple localization and occurs with lymphohematogenous metastasis in the presence of bacillemia. It is also possible to transfer the process from the surrounding skin tissues of the paraorbital area, face, lacrimal sac, conjunctiva.
Tuberculosis of the skin of the eyelid is characterized by the appearance in the skin of tuberculous tubercles in the saw of small infiltrates of yellowish pink color, the surface of the skin that towers over the skin, with necrosis and subsequent scarring. When scarring the tuberculous focus of the skin of the eyelid, its deformations and eversion may occur, which leads to a non-closure of the eyelids.
With vulgar lupus, skin infiltrates are located on the eyelids, can extend to the intermarginal space and the conjunctiva of the eyelids, cause their scarring, systemic lupus erythematosus refers not to tuberculosis, but to systemic lesions of connective tissue.
Scrofuloderma occurs in the thickness of the skin in the form of nodes with necrosis, forms ulcers and fistula. In their contents are mycobacterium tuberculosis. With scrofuloderma, gross scarring of the skin is noted, which, depending on the localization of the process, can lead to a shortening, eyelid twisting, and a non-opening of the eye gap.