TY - JOUR AU - Dobos, Karen M. AU - Quinn, Frederick D. AU - Ashford, David A. AU - Horsburgh, C. Robert AU - King, C. Harold T1 - Emergence of a Unique Group of Necrotizing Mycobacterial Diseases T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 1999 VL - 5 IS - 3 SP - 367 SN - 1080-6059 AB - Although most diseases due to pathogenic mycobacteria are caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, several other mycobacterial diseases—caused by M. ulcerans (Buruli ulcer), M. marinum, and M. haemophilum—have begun to emerge. We review the emergence of diseases caused by these three pathogens in the United States and around the world in the last decade. We examine the pathophysiologic similarities of the diseases (all three cause necrotizing skin lesions) and common reservoirs of infection (stagnant or slow-flowing water). Examination of the histologic and pathogenic characteristics of these mycobacteria suggests differences in the modes of transmission and pathogenesis, though no singular mechanism for either characteristic has been definitively described for any of these mycobacteria. KW - United States DO - 10.3201/eid0503.990307 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/5/3/99-0307_article ER - End of Reference