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Unlabelled: In order to describe the clinical and laboratory findings of Mycobacterium tuberculosis peritonitis M. tuberculosis in HIV+ patients, we conducted a retrospective analysis of the medical records of HIV+ patients with isolation of M. tuberculosis from ascitic fluid (AF), assisted at Hospital Muñiz, Buenos Aires, Argentina (1996-2005)., Results: 21 patients were included. Median age: 33, male sex: 52%; peripheral blood CD4-T lymphocyte count (median): 85/mm3; prior history of tuberculosis: 40%; cirrhosis: 65%; enolism: 45%; HCV coinfection: 85%. The most frequent symptoms were abdominal distension (71%), fever (62%) and abdominal pain (19%). The chemical characteristics of the AF were (median): leukocyte count: 751/mm3 (mononuclear predominance: 79%), protein: 3.1 g/dl, LDH: 351 IU/l. AF samples positive for acid fast bacilli at direct microscopic examination: 14%. Infection with multidrug resistant M. tuberculosis (TB-MR): 20%. M. tuberculosis was isolated from other clinical samples in 79%. Fifteen patients received treatment for tuberculosis; in 30% of cases, it was not appropriate due to the susceptibility of the isolated strain. Overall mortality was 66.4%., Conclusion: high mortality was observed, which may be attributable to the high frequency of TB-MR, the level of immunosuppression and the prevalence of cirrhosis secondary to enolism and/or HCV coinfection.

AIDS-related multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDRTB) emerged during the 90s in several countries around the world. In Argentina, the most notorious outbreak was documented in the Hospital Muñiz, which is still undergoing its aftermaths. In order to evaluate the situation in this hospital regarding MDRTB, we analysed clinical, demographic and epidemiological traits of the 53 male MDRTB-aids patients admitted during 2001-2003 at a ward especially dedicated to their isolation. Patients' mean age was 32 years, 70% lived in Buenos Aires suburbs. A history of illicit drug users or imprisonment was recorded in 68% and 26% of the patients, respectively. Severe immunodepression (CD4+ count < 100/microl) was found in 88% of the patients and 58% died. Mortality was associated with non-adherence to treatment and co-morbidity, but not with the genotype of the "M" strain, responsible for the original outbreak. Of 40 cases available for restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), 29 (72.5%) resulted in cluster. RFLP patterns of 24 matched the "M" genotype. In this study, resistance to 5 or 6 drugs was found to be an indicator of disease due to the "M" strain. The "M" genotype associated significantly to previous admission at the Hospital Muñiz or imprisonment. In brief, 14 years after the detection of the first MDRTB-aids case, we report here the persistence and predominance of the original outbreak strain at the hospital. Stronger TB infection control measures are urgently needed in hospitals and jails in order to strengthen the declining trend of the MDRTB observed in our country towards the end of the last decade.

M. bovis, the agent of bovine tuberculosis, was in other times, the main ethiological agent of tuberculosis (TBC) in industrialized countries. At the moment, the human cases have become not very frequent, except in those countries where the illness is even endemic. In patients with immunodeficiency syndrome, it usually presents as a systemic illness. We present the case of a woman with AIDS and disseminated TBC caused by M. bovis. The isolated micobacteria turned out to be resistant to rifampin and pyrazinamide. She was treated with isoniazid, ethambutol and ofloxacin with good clinical evolution. This case turned out to be the first isolation of M. bovis in a patient with AIDS, in Muñiz hospital.