Breast implant infection with Mycobacterium fortuitum group: report of case and review

Abstract

There has been a marked increase in the frequency with which breast prosthesis are being used, both for reconstructive and cosmetic purposes. Although breast implant-related infections are uncommon, they are typically caused by bacterial skin flora, specifically Staphylococcus aureus and the coagulase negative staphylococci. There have been infrequent reports of breast implant infection caused by the atypical mycobacteria. This report summarizes the case of a young female who underwent augmentation mammoplasty who presented shortly thereafter with clinical evidence of an infected breast prosthesis. Despite a protracted course of empiric antibiotic therapy and multiple surgical interventions, she failed to improve. Additional microbiologic investigations allowed for a diagnosis of Mycobacterium fortuitum group breast implant infection to be established. A prolonged course of anti-mycobacterial therapy, based upon susceptibility results, allowed for eradication of the infection and subsequent successful re-implantation of the prosthesis.