Sofia Carneiro
Nontuberculous mycobacteria are increasingly causing disease in humans, ranging from skin lesions to widespread disease. Its ubiquitous character in nature makes its exposure very common. For these reasons, diagnosis of the disease, the correct identification/ characterization of the Nontuberculous mycobacteria responsible for the infection, and consequently the definition of the appropriate treatment regimen, remain the major challenge. Treatment is complex, requiring the prolonged use of multiple drugs, which makes it expensive and often brings side effects for the patient. So far, it has not been possible to establish, with certainty, a relationship between in vitro assays and microbiological response to drug treatment, thus making the treatments empirical. Diagnostic and clinical criteria should be updated to enable a more reliable identification in order to improve our understanding of Nontuberculous mycobacteria epidemiology, particularly for the species that have the most potential to cause disease. As an ultimate unavoidable downstream procedure, the use of whole genome data will strongly contribute to Nontuberculous mycobacteria characterization, not only for more precise strain/species differentiation but also eventually to anticipate antibiotic resistance through the identification of resistance markers. With this review, we hope to give the viewer an overview of the Nontuberculous mycobacteria-related topics that we believe are the most important.
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