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

ABSTRACT: 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

SUBMITTER: Echeverria G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10142742 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature