Mima polymorpha as a cause of otitis externa. Report of a case.

Abstract

THE<i>Mima-Herellea</i>group of bacteria were not recognized as a distinct entity and remained undescribed until the studies of DeBord, 1942.¹The tribe<i>Mimeae</i>are gram-negative, nonmobile, encapsulated aerobic bacilli which appear coccoid on gram-stain preparations from solid media. Coccoid and bacillary forms are present from liquid culture media. The organisms were assigned the names<i>Mima polymorpha</i>and<i>Herellea vaginicola</i>. Because of their uncertain taxonomic position and their absence from the seventh edition of<i>Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology</i>, similar organisms with different names appeared in the literature.<i>Mima-Herellea</i>have been variously called "B5W,"²<i>Bacterium anitratum</i>,³<i>Moraxella glucidolytica</i>,⁴<i>Achromobacter lwoffi</i>,⁵and<i>Acinetobacter anitratum</i>.⁶ The<i>Mimeae</i>group of bacteria have been indicated as the cause of septicemia, meningitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, synovitis, wound infection, postburn sepsis, and skin lesions.<i>7,8</i>Despite extensive search of the literature, there were no available reports indicating their association with