Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA by polymerase chain reaction from paraffin samples of chronic granulomatous endometritis.

The histological diagnosis of tuberculosis endometritis is often troublesome. Indeed, the typical histological features are often absent and the sensitivity of the Ziehl–Neelsen stain for acid-fast bacilli is very low, about 2–3%.1,2 On the other hand, since the clinical diagnosis of tuberculosis may also be difficult, clinicians often have to rely on histology. A dramatic improvement in sensitivity and specificity of the diagnosis of mycobacterial diseases has been achieved in recent years with the development of molecular techniques.3–5 We explored the feasibility of detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in paraffin-embedded tissues of the endometrium and compared the results with the previous morphological diagnosis.