Nontuberculous mycobacteria isolated from specimens of pulmonary tuberculosis suspects, Northern Tunisia: 2002-2016.

BACKGROUND: Reports on the worldwide ascending trend of pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) isolation rates and their effective role in respiratory tract infections are compelling. However, as yet, there are no such data relating to Tunisia. METHODS: Here we carried out a retrospective review of mycobacterial cultures originating from Northern Tunisia, which have been processed in the laboratory of mycobacteria of the Institut Pasteur de Tunis, during the time period 2002-2016. All pulmonary NTM (PNTM) isolates available for culture were characterized phenotypically and their taxonomic status was further established based on polymorphisms in rpoB, 16S rRNA, hsp65, and sodA DNA gene sequences. RESULTS: Of the 10,466 specimens collected from HIV-negative Tunisian patients with presumptive clinical pulmonary TB, 60 (0.6%) yielded PNTM isolates. An overall annual PNTM isolation prevalence of 0.2/100,000 was estimated. As far as could be ascertained, this isolation rate accounts amongst the lowest reported hitherto throughout the world. Among the 30 NTM isolates that were available for culture, 27 (90.0%) have been identified to the species level. The most commonly encountered species was Mycobacterium kansasii (23.3%) subtype 1. Strikingly, all M. kansasii cases were male patients originating from Bizerte, an industrialized region particularly known for iron industry. The remaining NTM species were M. fortuitum (16.6%), M. novocastrense (16.6%), M. chelonae (10.0%), M. gordonae (6.6%), M. gadium (6.6%), M. peregrinum (3.3%), M. porcinum (3.3%), and M. flavescens (3.3%). There were no bacteria of the M. avium complex, the most frequently isolated NTM globally, and the main driver of the rise of NTM-lung diseases. CONCLUSIONS: This study uncovered an exceptional low prevalence of PNTM isolation among HIV-negative TB suspects in Northern Tunisia, suggesting a very low burden of NTM pulmonary disease. However, the frequent isolation of M. kansasii subtype 1, the most pathogenic subtype, particularly from the industrialized region of Bizerte, strongly suggests its effective involvement in a typical pulmonary disease.

MDR-TB Outbreak among HIV-Negative Tunisian Patients followed during 11 Years.

BACKGROUND: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) outbreaks that evolve, from the outset, in a context strictly negative for HIV infection deserve special consideration since they reflect the true intrinsic epidemic potential of the causative strain. To our knowledge, the long-term evolution of such exceptional outbreaks and the treatment outcomes for the involved patients has never been reported hitherto. Here we provide a thorough description, over an 11-year period, of an MDR-TB outbreak that emerged and expanded in an HIV-negative context, Northern Tunisia. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: From October 2001 to June 2011, the MDR-TB outbreak involved 48 HIV-negative individuals that are mainly young (mean age 31.09 yrs; 89.6% male) and noninstitutionalized. Drug susceptibility testing coupled to mutational analysis revealed that initial transmission involved an isolate that was simultaneously resistant to isoniazid, rifampicin, ethambutol, and streptomycin. The causative Haarlem3-ST50 outbreak strain expanded mainly as an 11-banded IS6110 RFLP profile (77.1%), from which a 12-banded subclone evolved. After undergoing a 2-year treatment with second-line drugs, 22 (45.8%) patients were cured and 3 (6.2%) completed treatment, thus yielding an overall treatment success rate of 52.1%. Among the patients that experienced unfavorable treatment outcomes, 10 (20.8%) failed treatment, 3 (6.2%) were lost to follow-up, 5 (10.4%) died, and 5 (10.4%) could not be evaluated. Poor adherence to treatment was found to be the main independent predictor of unfavorable outcomes (HR: 9.15; 95% CI 1.72-48.73; P = 0.014). Intriguingly, the evolved 12-banded subclone proved significantly associated with unfavorable outcomes (HR: 4.90; 95% CI 1.04-23.04, P = 0.044). High rate of fatality and relapse was further demonstrated at the long-term, since 70% of those whose treatment failed have died, and 24% among those deemed successfully treated have relapsed. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Taken together, the data obtained in this study indicate that MDR-TB clinical isolates could become fit enough to cause large and severe outbreaks in an HIV-negative context. Such MDR-TB outbreaks are characterized by low treatment success rates and could evolve towards increased severity, thus calling for early detection of cases and the necessity to raise the bar of surveillance throughout and beyond the treatment period.