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. 2013 Nov;75(5):199-204.
doi: 10.4046/trd.2013.75.5.199. Epub 2013 Nov 29.

Increasing Recovery of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria from Respiratory Specimens over a 10-Year Period in a Tertiary Referral Hospital in South Korea

Won-Jung Koh  1 , Boksoon Chang  1 , Byeong-Ho Jeong  1 , Kyeongman Jeon  1 , Su-Young Kim  1 , Nam Yong Lee  2 , Chang-Seok Ki  2 , O Jung Kwon  1
Affiliations

Increasing Recovery of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria from Respiratory Specimens over a 10-Year Period in a Tertiary Referral Hospital in South Korea

Won-Jung Koh et al. Tuberc Respir Dis (Seoul). 2013 Nov.

Abstract

Background: The number of patients with pulmonary disease caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) has been increasing worldwide. The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term trends in the NTM recovery rate from respiratory specimens over a 10-year period in a tertiary referral hospital in South Korea.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of mycobacterial cultures of respiratory specimens at Samsung Medical Center from January 2001 to December 2011.

Results: During the study period, 32,841 respiratory specimens from 10,563 patients were found to be culture-positive for mycobacteria. These included 12,619 (38%) Mycobacterium tuberculosis and 20,222 (62%) NTM isolates. The proportion of NTM among all positive mycobacterial cultures increased from 43% (548/1,283) in 2001 to 70% (3,341/4,800) in 2011 (p<0.001, test for trend). The recovery rate of NTM isolates from acid-fast bacilli smear-positive specimens increased from 9% (38/417) in 2001 to 64% (1,284/1,997) in 2011 (p<0.001, test for trend). The proportion of positive liquid cultures was higher for NTM than for M. tuberculosis (p<0.001). The most frequently isolated NTM were Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex (53%) and Mycobacterium abscessus-massiliense complex (25%).

Conclusion: The recovery rate of NTM from respiratory specimens in South Korea has increased steadily.

Keywords: Epidemiology; Korea; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Nontuberculous Mycobacteria.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Changes in the rate of recovery of mycobacteria from respiratory specimens. The annual percentage of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) isolated (filled circles) from requested specimens increased, while that of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (open circles) remained stable.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Changes in the proportions of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) of all positive mycobacterial cultures during the study period. The proportion of NTM increased significantly.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in the proportion of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) of acid-fast bacilli smear-positive respiratory specimens. The proportion of NTM increased rapidly during the study period. AFB: acid-fast bacilli.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Prevalence of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) species in respiratory specimens. Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex (MAC) and Mycobacterium abscessus-massiliense complex accounted for the majority of the isolated NTM species.
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