First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn

Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) lung infections are often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis, which can lead to ineffective antibiotic treatments. In this report, we present three cases of NTM lung infections in Ecuador that were initially diagnosed and treated as tuberculosis based on the results of sp...

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Main Authors: Echeverria, Gustavo, Rueda, Veronica, Espinoza, Wilson, Rosero, Carlos, Zumarraga, Martin Jose, Waard, Jacobus H. de
Format: info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo
Language:Inglés
Published: MDPI 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/14457
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/4/507
https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12040507
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author Echeverria, Gustavo
Rueda, Veronica
Espinoza, Wilson
Rosero, Carlos
Zumarraga, Martin Jose
Waard, Jacobus H. de
author_browse Echeverria, Gustavo
Espinoza, Wilson
Rosero, Carlos
Rueda, Veronica
Waard, Jacobus H. de
Zumarraga, Martin Jose
author_facet Echeverria, Gustavo
Rueda, Veronica
Espinoza, Wilson
Rosero, Carlos
Zumarraga, Martin Jose
Waard, Jacobus H. de
author_sort Echeverria, Gustavo
collection INTA Digital
description Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) lung infections are often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis, which can lead to ineffective antibiotic treatments. In this report, we present three cases of NTM lung infections in Ecuador that were initially diagnosed and treated as tuberculosis based on the results of sputum smear microscopy. The patients, all male, included two immunocompetent individuals and one HIV-positive subject. Unfortunately, sputum culture was not initiated until late in the course of the disease and the cause of the lung infection, Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), was only identified after the patients had either passed away or were lost to follow-up. These cases are the first documented cases of NTM lung infections in the English medical literature from Ecuador. We emphasize the importance of accurate diagnosis of NTM infections by culture and identification to species level. Sputum smear staining alone cannot differentiate between mycobacterial species, which can lead to misidentification and ineffective treatments. Additionally, reporting NTM pulmonary disease as a notifiable disease to national TB control programs is recommended to obtain accurate prevalence data. These data are critical in determining the importance of this public health problem and the necessary actions needed to address it.
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spelling INTA144572023-04-12T16:34:31Z First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn Echeverria, Gustavo Rueda, Veronica Espinoza, Wilson Rosero, Carlos Zumarraga, Martin Jose Waard, Jacobus H. de Mycobacterium Enfermedades Pulmonares Diagnóstico Ecuador Pulmonary Diseases Tuberculosis Diagnosis Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) lung infections are often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis, which can lead to ineffective antibiotic treatments. In this report, we present three cases of NTM lung infections in Ecuador that were initially diagnosed and treated as tuberculosis based on the results of sputum smear microscopy. The patients, all male, included two immunocompetent individuals and one HIV-positive subject. Unfortunately, sputum culture was not initiated until late in the course of the disease and the cause of the lung infection, Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), was only identified after the patients had either passed away or were lost to follow-up. These cases are the first documented cases of NTM lung infections in the English medical literature from Ecuador. We emphasize the importance of accurate diagnosis of NTM infections by culture and identification to species level. Sputum smear staining alone cannot differentiate between mycobacterial species, which can lead to misidentification and ineffective treatments. Additionally, reporting NTM pulmonary disease as a notifiable disease to national TB control programs is recommended to obtain accurate prevalence data. These data are critical in determining the importance of this public health problem and the necessary actions needed to address it. Instituto de Biotecnología Fil: Echeverria, Gustavo. Universidad Central del Ecuador. Instituto de Investigación en Zoonosis-CIZ; Ecuador Fil: Echeverria, Gustavo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Programa de Doctorado; Argentina Fil: Echeverria, Gustavo. BioGENA. División Investigación y Desarrollo; Ecuador Fil: Rueda, Veronica. Universidad Central del Ecuador. Instituto de Investigación en Zoonosis-CIZ; Ecuador Fil: Espinoza, Wilson. Hospital de Especialidades Eugenio Espejo. Departamento de Tuberculosis; Ecuador Fil: Rosero, Carlos. Hospital de Especialidades Eugenio Espejo. Departamento de Tuberculosis; Ecuador Fil: Zumarraga, Martin Jose. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular; Argentina Fil: Zumarraga, Martin Jose. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Waard, Jacobus H. de. Universidad Central de Venezuela. Instituto de Biomedicina “Jacinto Convit”. Departamento de Tuberculosis; Venezuela Fil: Waard, Jacobus H. de. Universidad de Las Américas. Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. One Health Research Group; Ecuador 2023-04-12T16:31:59Z 2023-04-12T16:31:59Z 2023-04 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/14457 https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/4/507 2076-0817 https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12040507 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf Ecuador .......... (nation) (World, South America) 1000051 MDPI Pathogens 12 (4) : 507. (April 2023)
spellingShingle Mycobacterium
Enfermedades Pulmonares
Diagnóstico
Ecuador
Pulmonary Diseases
Tuberculosis
Diagnosis
Nontuberculous Mycobacteria
Echeverria, Gustavo
Rueda, Veronica
Espinoza, Wilson
Rosero, Carlos
Zumarraga, Martin Jose
Waard, Jacobus H. de
First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title_full First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title_fullStr First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title_full_unstemmed First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title_short First Case Reports of Nontuberculous Mycobacterial (NTM) Lung Disease in Ecuador: Important Lessons to Learn
title_sort first case reports of nontuberculous mycobacterial ntm lung disease in ecuador important lessons to learn
topic Mycobacterium
Enfermedades Pulmonares
Diagnóstico
Ecuador
Pulmonary Diseases
Tuberculosis
Diagnosis
Nontuberculous Mycobacteria
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/14457
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/4/507
https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12040507
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