Double Trouble- Uncommon Manifestations of Common Diseases; Preeclampsia and Tuberculosis in a Postpartum Female

Archana Rajan¹, Manasvini Bhatt², Manish Soneja³, Naveet Wig⁴, and Aishwarya Rajan⁵*

¹Senior Resident, Department of Nephrology, ABVIMS and Dr RML Hospital, India
²Senior Resident, Department of Endocrinology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India
³Professor, Department of Medicine, AIIMS, India
⁴Professor and HOD, Department of Medicine, AIIMS, India
⁵National Institute of Immunology, Laboratory of Chemical Glycobiology, India

*Corresponding Author: Archana Rajan, Senior resident, Department of Nephrology, ABVIMS and Dr RML Hospital, India.

DOI: 10.64258/3067-7130.2025.1020028

Submission Date: October 23, 2025

Published Date: October 30, 2025

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Abstract

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy occur in about 10% of pregnant women around the world. Preeclampsia is a major cause of maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. Serous effusions due to preeclampsia are rare and least considered in the differential diagnosis for etiology of serositis. Pleural effusion is rarely encountered in cases of preeclampsia in obstetrics clinics. Tuberculosis (TB) is a widely prevalent disease, especially in developing and underdeveloped resource-limited settings. During pregnancy, the immune system is suppressed to prevent foetal rejection, and it gets reconstituted postpartum. During this reconstitution phase, reactivation of TB may occur, however we hardly test peripartum females for latent tuberculosis, resulting in increasing maternal morbidity and mortality also increasing chances of spreading it to new born. We describe the diagnostic conundrum faced on a case of reactivation of TB in a postpartum female who also happened to have bilateral pleural effusion, mild pericardial effusion and ascites due to severe preeclampsia, a cause that is seldom considered as a cause of transudative effusions.

Keywords

Preeclampsia, Tuberculosis, Serositis, Postpartum Fever, Pleural Effusion, Ascites, PUO

Citation

Archana R, Manasvini B, Manish S, Naveet W (2025) Double Trouble- Uncommon Manifestations of Common Diseases; Preeclampsia and Tuberculosis in a Postpartum Female. On J Clin & Med Case Rep 1(6): 1-8.