Mycobacterium fortuitum infection of the sternum. Review of the literature and case illustration
L. E. Samuels, S. Sharma, R. J. Morris, M. P. Solomon, M. S. Granick, C. A. Wood and S. K. Brockman
Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Hahnemann University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pa, USA.
Sternal wound infection with atypical mycobacteria following open heart
surgery is a rare occurrence. Previous reports have described infection by
Mycobacterium fortuitum, an acid-fast bacillus and member of a larger
family of rapidly growing mycobacteria. The source and mode of transmission
have not been identified. Surgical debridement and the combination of
aminoglycosides and quinolones have been shown to be effective methods of
treatment. More recently, clarithromycin has been shown to be the drug of
choice against rapidly growing mycobacteria. We describe a 49-year-old
woman who underwent infundibular stenosis repair and in whom M fortuitum
sternal osteomyelitis developed. Total sternectomy, muscle flap
reconstruction, and antibiotic treatment successfully eradicated the
infection.
