[Clinical and pathological analysis of 114 patients with postoperative wound infections by M. abscessus].

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the pathological findings of postoperative wound infections by M. abscessus.

METHODS

Proven sources of infections in 114 patients with postoperative wound infections were contaminated instrument disinfection liquid. According to the wound exudates cultivation and bacteriologic identification, the pathogen of postoperative infections was proved M. abscessus. Pathological features of postoperative wound infections were analyzed retrospectively.

RESULTS

The postoperative wound infections in 114 cases involved cutaneous and subcutaneous tissue 95(83.3%), deep muscular tissue 21(18.4%), local lymph nodes 13(11.4%) and visceral organ, peritoneum and mesentery 3(2.6%). The main pathological appearances were granulomatous lesions and nonspecific chronic pyogenic inflammations. The granulomatous lesions include pyogenic tuberculosis-like granuloma, atypical tuberculosis-like granuloma and tuberculosis-like granuloma. The three types of granuloma could be seen in the same case and the percentage of three types was 75.4%, 28.1%, 59.6% respectively. 38 cases (33.3%) were showed red mycobacterium at acid-fast stain.

CONCLUSIONS

The pathological appearances of most postoperative wound infections by M. abscessus were more or less different from those of tuberculosis. Awareness of the pathologic features of the postoperative wound M. abscessus infections will facilitate the diagnosis so that appropriate therapy may be initiated before the disease is far advanced and prevent infection dissemination.