Disseminated Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare infection in homosexual men dying of acquired immunodeficiency. NLM AIDSLINE Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1983. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

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Disseminated Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare infection in homosexual men dying of acquired immunodeficiency.

JAMA. 1982 Dec 10;248(22):2980-2. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/83060071
Zakowski P; Fligiel S; Berlin GW; Johnson L Jr

Abstract: Five homosexual men dying at UCLA Center for the Health Sciences, Los Angeles, with acquired immunodeficiency and Pneumocystis pneumonia, Kaposi's sarcoma, or cryptosporidiosis since May 1981 have all had mycobacteria of the Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex cultured from tissues taken just before death or at postmortem examination. Each man had histological evidence of disseminated mycobacterial infection. Acid-fast organisms were seen in macrophages in the lung, spleen, and lymph nodes in all cases and in a variety of additional organs in two cases. Other severe infections were always found at postmortem examination--cytomegalovirus, cryptosporidiosis, and Pneumocystis. Disseminated M avium-intracellulare infection has been so striking in homosexual males dying with acquired immunodeficiency at our institution that we believe a vigorous search for mycobacteria should be made in all such patients. Empiric therapy for mycobacterial infection may be justified in selected cases of immunodeficiency before a specific microbiological diagnosis.
Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/*COMPLICATIONS/MICROBIOLOGY/ MORTALITY Adult Case Report *Homosexuality Human Lung/MICROBIOLOGY Lymph Nodes/MICROBIOLOGY Male Mycobacterium avium/ISOLATION & PURIF *Mycobacterium Infections/IMMUNOLOGY/MICROBIOLOGY Pneumonia, Pneumocystis carinii/DIAGNOSIS Sarcoma, Kaposi's/DIAGNOSIS Spleen/MICROBIOLOGY JOURNAL ARTICLE

KWDacquiredimmunodeficiencysyndrome/KWDcomplications/microbiology/mortalityadultcasereportKWDhomosexualityhumanlung/microbiologylymphnodes/microbiologymalemycobacteriumavium/isolation&purifKWDmycobacteriuminfections/immunology/microbiologypneumonia,pneumocystiscarinii/diagnosissarcoma,kaposi's/diagnosisspleen/microbiologyjournalarticle
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M8330015

Copyright © 1983 - National Library of Medicine. Reproduced under license with the National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD.

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