Mycobacterium xenopi clinical relevance and determinants, the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, isolation of Mycobacterium xenopi is infrequent, and its clinical relevance is often uncertain. To determine clinical relevance and determinants, we retrospectively reviewed medical files of all patients in the Netherlands in whom M. xenopi was isolated from January 1999 through March 2005 by using diagnostic criteria for nontuberculous mycobacterial infection published by the American Thoracic Society. We found 49 patients, mostly white men, with an average age of 60 years and pre-existing pulmonary disease; of these patients, 25 (51%) met the diagnostic criteria. Mycobacterial genotype, based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing, was associated with true infection. Most infections were pulmonary, but pleural and spinal infections (spinal in HIV-infected patients) were also noted. Treatment regimens varied in content and duration; some patients were over-treated and some were undertreated.