Sarah A. Longworth

These updated guidelines from the American Society of Transplantation Infectious Diseases Community of Practice review the epidemiology, diagnosis, prevention, and management of nontuberculous mycobacterial infections in the pre‐ and post‐transplant period. NTM commonly cause one of five different clinical syndromes: pleuropulmonary disease, skin and soft tissue infection, osteoarticular infection, disseminated disease, including that caused by catheter‐associated infection, and lymphadenitis. Diagnosis of these infections can be challenging, particularly when they are isolated from nonsterile spaces, owing to their ubiquity in nature. Consequently, diagnosis of pulmonary infections with these pathogens requires fulfillment of microbiologic, radiographic, and clinical criteria to address this concern. A combination of culture and molecular diagnostic techniques is often required to make a species‐level identification. Treatment varies depending on the species isolated and is complex, owing to drug toxicities, need for long‐term multidrug regimens, and consideration of complex drug‐drug interactions between antimicrobials and immunosuppressive agents. Given these treatment challenges, efforts should be made in both the hospital and community settings to limit exposure to these pathogens to the extent feasible.

Watch a video presentation of this article Answer questions and earn CME