Survival of Mycobacterium tuberculosis organisms for 8 days in fresh lung tissue from an exhumed body.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis was isolated from the lung tissue of an 86-year-old unembalmed woman who was exhumed for an autopsy 8 days after her death. Autopsy prosectors should consider performing microbiological culture in all cases with a history or gross pathological findings suggestive of an infection even if the postmortem interval is extended. In addition, prosectors should still adhere to biosafety precautions for airborne pathogens, because a long postmortem interval does not necessarily provide assurance that these organisms are not viable.
Nolte
Kurt B
KB
Office of the Medical Investigator, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001, USA. knolte@salud.unm.edu
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D049249:Exhumation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000382:microbiology*; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013997:Time Factors; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000382:microbiology*