Bacteriology of sinusitis in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients: implications for management.

The bacteriology of sinusitis in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients has been only sporadically reported. In this study, we report the results of cultures taken from 12 HIV patients with refractory chronic sinusitis who underwent surgery. Nine of the 12 patients had positive cultures with 16 isolates and 5 patients having multiple isolates. Five of the 12 patients grew out atypical or opportunistic infections not responsive to standard medical therapy, including 3 patients with cytomegalovirus, 1 with Aspergillus fumigatus, and 1 with Mycobacterium kansasii. These results suggest the need for aggressive medical care for HIV-infected patients with sinusitis and early intervention for tissue cultures in patients who do not respond to standard antibiotic regimens.