Disseminated Non-tuberculous Mycobacteriosis

Abstract

The impressive case report of a pathology that manifested primarily as osteolyses in different skeletal areas cannot be assigned to a diagnosis of tuberculosis of the bone. Tuberculosis is the exclusive name for all pathologies caused by Mycobakterium tuberculosis complex. Mycobacterium avium intracellulare complex, as found in the culture of the patient whose case was reported, is one of the non-tuberculous mycobacteria known as MOTT (“mycobacteria other than tuberculosis”) (1– 3). The diagnosis of the case patient should therefore have been: disseminated non-tuberculous mycobacteriosis, caused by Mycobacterium avium intracellulare complex—a pathology that is often observed in association with HIV infection and in the course of neoplastic hematological disorders, such as in the case report. In general, the distinction between TB and MOTT is of far reaching importance. The route of infection, pathogenicity, responsiveness to antimycobacterial medication, and often the clinical presentation are different—factors that influence diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis.