TY  - JOUR
A1  - Strobel, Katharina
A1  - Sickenberger, Christina
A1  - Schoen, Christoph
A1  - Kneitz, Hermann
A1  - Kolb-Mäurer, Annette
A1  - Goebeler, Matthias
T1  - Diagnosis and therapy of Mycobacterium marinum: a single-center 21-year retrospective analysis
JF  - Journal der Deutschen Dermatologischen Gesellschaft
N2  - Background and Objectives
In Europe, infections with Mycobacterium (M.) marinum are rare. We conducted a retrospective single-center study to assess the clinical spectrum of M. marinum infection and its diagnosis, treatment and outcome under real-world conditions.
Patients and Methods
Eighteen patients presenting with M. marinum infections between 1998 and 2018 were identified in the data warehouse of the University Hospital Würzburg and considered for detailed analysis.
Results
Twelve patients reported aquatic exposure. In 16/18 cases the upper extremities were affected. No invasive infections were detected. Mean time to diagnosis was 15 weeks. Histology revealed granulomatous inflammation in 14 patients while mycobacterial cultures were positive for M. marinum in 16 cases. Most patients received antibiotic monotherapy (14/18) while combination therapy was administered in four cases. Treatment (with a median duration of 10 weeks) was successful in 13 patients. Five patients were lost to follow-up.
Conclusions
Our retrospective analysis of M. marinum infections at a German tertiary referral center revealed a considerable diagnostic delay and the relevance of microbiological culture, PCR and histology for diagnosis. Monotherapy with clarithromycin (rather than doxycycline) appeared as a reasonable treatment option while immunosuppressed or -compromised patients and those with extended disease received combination therapy.
KW  - Mycobacterium marinum
KW  - diagnosis
KW  - therapy
Y1  - 2022
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-318428
VL  - 20
IS  - 9
SP  - 1211
EP  - 1218
ER  -