When abdominal tuberculosis gives rise to structural or emergency complications, the management approach changes substantially. This protocol addresses the subset of patients in whom the disease course has led to fibrosis, strictures, hypertrophic lesions, or an acute abdomen.
Patients with abdominal tuberculosis who develop complications — specifically fibrosis, intestinal strictures, hypertrophic lesions, or an acute abdomen at any site — require a distinct management pathway. Surgical intervention is reserved for these complications, or when diagnostic certainty cannot be established through non-operative means.
Operative intervention is the mainstay of management in this setting, with the procedure selected according to the nature and location of the complication.