Characteristics of HIV Negative Adult Patients with Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Blood Stream Infection

    Objective       To summarize the clinical and laboratory characteristics of HIV-negative adult patients with Mycobacterium tuberculosis(MTB) blood stream infection (BSI).

    Methods       We searched databases of the Clinical Laboratory and enrolled HIV-negative patients with blood culture positive for MTB, or the microbiologically confirmed pulmonary TB patients with blood culture negative for MTB from January 2010 to January 2016 in Peking Union Medical College Hospital, and analyzed the clinical and laboratory characteristics of these patients retrospectively.

    Results       A total of 6999 patients with blood culture for Mycobacterium were screened, and 28 patients with MTB BSI (case group) and 32 patients with negative MTB blood culture but microbiologically confirmed pulmonary TB (control group) were enrolled in the present study. The proportion of female (57% vs. 25%, P=0.011), the peak temperature(39.70±0.78)℃ vs. (38.70±0.98)℃, P < 0.001, the proportion of patients with more than one organ involved (71% vs. 3%, P < 0.001), the proportion of patients with severe complications (32% vs. 3%, P=0.008) and the hypersensitive C reactive protein(hsCRP) level94.74 (61.63-144.21)mg/L vs. 59.97 (28.88-104.50)mg/L, P=0.016 in the case group were significantly higher than those in the control group. The lymphocyte count in the case group was significant lower than that in the control group0.44(0.27-0.77)×10⁹/L vs. 1.03(0.52-1.42)×10⁹/L, P=0.001.

    Conclusions       HIV negative patients can also have MTB BSI. MTB BSI should be considered when female patients with higher temperature, multiple organs involvement, severe complications, lower lymphocytes and higher hsCRP level.