Acid-fast bacilli in sputum: a case of Legionella micdadei pneumonia.
Legionella micdadei has been implicated as a cause of nosocomial pneumonia. There are no reports of L. micdadei pneumonia diagnosed by acid-fast stain of expectorated sputum. We report a case of L. micdadei pneumonia in which expectorated sputum harbored acid-fast bacteria that reacted specifically with fluorescent antiserum to L. micdadei, confirmed by culture. In a patient at risk for nosocomial infection, the differential diagnosis of a positive sputum stain for acid-fast bacilli should include L. micdadei in addition to mycobacteria. Therapy for L. micdadei infection should be considered pending confirmation of the diagnosis.
D000368:Aged; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000382:microbiology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007875:Legionella / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007876:Legionellosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000382:microbiology*; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology*; D013194:Staining and Labeling