BackgroundAlthough atypical mycobacteria had been increasingly found in various ocular infections in the past decades, a slow-growing Mycobacterium haemophilum (M. haemophilum) was scarcely reported. Similar to tuberculous infection, the presentation can masquerade as low-grade granulomatous intraocular inflammation with partial response to corticosteroids. Besides, the special requirements for culture make this pathogen difficult to diagnose. The study aims to report the clinical presentation and notify the awareness of NTM endophthalmitis among clinicians. This is the first case report of late-onset, postoperative M. haemophilum endophthalmitis in the literature.Case presentationA 66-year-old man with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) manifested chronic granulomatous inflammation in the left eye after multiple glaucoma surgeries. With a diagnosis of noninfectious panuveitis, he was treated with systemic corticosteroids. The inflammation initially responded to therapy although it subsequently worsened and became purulent endophthalmitis. The vitreous cultures grew M. haemophilum. Intraocular and systemic antimicrobial treatments were administered early, but the patient eventually turned blind.ConclusionsM. haemophilum endophthalmitis is a rare but serious intraocular complication leading to loss of vision or eyeball. Awareness of atypical mycobacterial infections is necessary especially in patients with impaired immune function, previous intraocular surgery, and corticosteroid resistance. Proper laboratory investigations and treatments should be performed. However, due to the rarity of the disease, the development of guidelines for its investigation and therapy is still challenging.

Background To report three cases of nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) endophthalmitis following multiple ocular surgeries and to review previous literature in order to study the clinical profile, treatment modalities, and visual outcomes among patients with NTM endophthalmitis. Methods Clinical manifestation and management of patients with NTM endophthalmitis in the Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand were described. In addition, a review of previously reported cases and case series from MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CENTRAL was performed. The clinical information and type of NTM from the previous studies and our cases were summarized. Results We reported three cases of NTM endophthalmitis caused by M. haemophilum, M. fortuitum and M. abscessus and a summarized review of 112 additional cases previously published. Of 115 patients, there were 101 exogenous endophthalmitis (87.8%) and 14 endogenous endophthalmitis (12.2%). The patients’ age ranged from 13 to 89 years with mean of 60.5 ± 17.7 years with no gender predominance. Exogenous endophthalmitis occurred in both healthy and immunocompromised hosts, mainly caused by cataract surgery (67.3%). In contrast, almost all endogenous endophthalmitis patients were immunocompromised. Among all patients, previous history of tuberculosis infection was identified in 4 cases (3.5%). Rapid growing NTMs were responsible for exogenous endophthalmitis, while endogenous endophthalmitis were commonly caused by slow growers. Treatment regimens consisted of macrolides, fluoroquinolones or aminoglycosides, which were continued for up to 12 months. Initial and final vision were generally worse than 6/60. Conclusions NTM endophthalmitis is a serious intraocular infection that leads to irreversible loss of vision. The presentation can mimic a chronic recurrent or persistent intraocular inflammation. History of multiple intraocular surgeries or immune-deficiency in patient with chronic panuveitis should raise the practioner’s suspicion of NTM endophthalmitis. Appropriate diagnosis and treatment are important to optimize visual outcome.

Abstract Background: To report three cases of nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) endophthalmitis following multiple ocular surgeries and to review previous literature in order to study the clinical profile, treatment modalities, and visual outcomes among patients with NTM endophthalmitis.Methods: Clinical manifestation and management of patients with NTM endophthalmitis in the Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand were described. In addition, a review of previously reported cases and case series from MEDLINE was performed. The clinical information and type of NTM from the previous studies and our cases were summarized.Results: We reported three cases of NTM endophthalmitis caused by M. haemophilum, M. fortuitum and M. abscessus and a summarized review of 95 additional cases previously published. Of 98 patients, there were 85 exogenous endophthalmitis (86.7%) and 13 endogenous endophthalmitis (13.3%). The patients’ age ranged from 13 to 89 years with mean of 61.1±18.7 years with no gender predominance. Exogenous endophthalmitis occurred in both healthy and immunocompromised hosts, mainly caused by cataract surgery (62.4%). In contrast, almost all endogenous endophthalmitis patients were immunocompromised. Among all patients, previous history of tuberculosis infection was identified in 4 cases (4.1%). Rapid growing NTMs were responsible for exogenous endophthalmitis, while endogenous endophthalmitis were commonly caused by slow growers. Treatment regimens consisted of macrolides, fluoroquinolones or aminoglycosides, which were continued for up to 12 months. Initial and final vision were generally worse than 6/60.Conclusions: NTM endophthalmitis is a serious intraocular infection that leads to irreversible loss of vision. The presentation can mimic a chronic recurrent or persistent intraocular inflammation. History of multiple intraocular surgeries or immune-deficiency in patient with chronic panuveitis should raise the practioner’s suspicion of NTM endophthalmitis. Appropriate diagnosis and treatment are important to optimize visual outcome.