ABSTRACT
Brucellosis remains endemic in many countries including Saudi Arabia. The disinfection of objects and surfaces contaminated with Brucella spp is not difficult, but we encountered a situation in which the organism survived the decontamination and liquefaction procedure adopted for AFB culture. A sputum specimen from a patient was sent for TB culture and the BACTEC MGIT 960 system isolated an organism identified as Brucella spp. The blood cultures and the serological testing had confirmed this case to be brucellosis. Isolation of Brucella spp from sputum samples is rare; this case appears to be the first of its kind. As the clinical presentation of TB may mimic brucellosis and vice versa, we recommend that handling specimens from all cases of undiagnosed PUO should be done with care because of the possibility that it may contain either of these organisms.
Subject(s)
Brucella/isolation & purification , Brucellosis/diagnosis , Sputum/microbiology , Adolescent , Bacteriological Techniques/methods , Brucellosis/microbiology , Decontamination , Humans , Male , Mycobacterium/growth & development , Saudi Arabia , Serologic Tests/methodsABSTRACT
Brucellosis is hyperendemic in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) with more than 8,000 cases reported each year to the public health authorities. The disease can affect almost any organ system in the body including the gastrointestinal system. In some instances, gastrointestinal manifestations may be the only presenting features of the disease. These range from milder complaints like diarrhea, vomiting to more serious complications like involvement of the liver, the spleen and the gallbladder to rarely life-threatening complications like colitis, pancreatitis, peritonitis and intestinal obstruction. Recognition of this type of presentation of brucellosis is important because early diagnosis and treatment usually result in complete recovery without complications.
