1/2. mycobacterium chelonae conjunctivitis and scleritis following vitrectomy.The atypical, or nontuberculous, mycobacteria are opportunistic pathogens that usually cause infection following accidental trauma or surgery. These organisms are ubiquitous in nature but have been found with increasing frequency in other environments that include medical offices and surgical suites. Management of atypical mycobacterial ocular infections can be difficult because in vitro antibiotic activity does not always correlate with in vivo efficacy and because normal immune defenses against mycobacteria may work too slowly to prevent irreversible damage to infected ocular tissues. This report describes a patient who developed a severe ocular infection due to mycobacterium chelonae after vitrectomy. Despite eradication of the infection, the eye became blind and painful. Arch Ophthalmol. 2000;118:1125-1128- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/2. corynebacterium striatum: a diphtheroid with pathogenic potential.Although nondiphtherial corynebacteria are ubiquitous in nature and commonly colonize the skin and mucous membranes of humans, they rarely account for clinical infection. corynebacterium striatum has rarely been reported to be a pathogen, causing pleuropulmonary infections and bacteremia in only immunocompromised or anatomically altered patients. We noted C. striatum to be the infecting pathogen or copathogen in six patients. To our knowledge, this report describes the first cases of C. striatum causing infection of exist sites of central venous catheters, thrombophlebitis associated with central venous catheters, conjunctivitis, and chorioamnionitis as well as a possible pathogen contributing to peritonitis and pyogenic granuloma. Unlike corynebacterium jeikeium, which is highly resistant to beta-lactam agents, aminoglycosides, and quinolones, all strains of C. striatum isolated from the patients described in this report were susceptible to vancomycin and aminoglycosides, and all strains except one were susceptible to penicillin g, imipenem, and ciprofloxacin. C. striatum should be recognized as a potential pathogen in both immunocompromised and normal hosts in the appropriate circumstances, and appropriate antimicrobial therapy can quickly lead to resolution of infection.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nature (Clic here for more details about this article) |