Clonal nosocomial expansion of Mycobacterium abscessus species in a single medical center hospital in Japan
Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are ubiquitous environmental organisms that cause pulmonary infectious diseases in susceptible individuals such as cystic fibrosis (CF). Mycobacterium abscessus species (MABS) is a group of emerging, highly antimicrobial-resistant NTM. Here we isolated MABS from a lot of patients without CF in a single medical center hospital in Japan. Environmental samples from potential infection sources were collected. To determine the mechanism of MABS transmition among these patients, we assessed this nosocomial outbreak using WGS and epidemiological data on clinical and environmental MABS isolates.