Abstract
Purpose :
Mycobacterium chimera is a cause of endocarditis and disseminated infections that is increasing in occurrence and has been documented to cause chorioretinitis. One paper involved examining 5 patients with M. chimera endocarditis and every patient had chorioretinal lesions, but larger scale data does not exist. We performed a cross-sectional study to check for prevalence rates in 26 patients with M. chimera endocarditis and disseminated disease.
Methods :
This is a cross sectional study examining prevalence of M. chimera chorioretinitis in patients with M. chimera endocarditis and disseminated disease. 26 patients with M. chimera infections were reviewed for a diagnosis of chorioretinitis.
Results :
Of the 26 patients with M. chimera infection, 5 were diagnosed with chorioretinitis for a prevalence rate of 19.2%.
Conclusions :
From our study group the prevalence rate of chorioretinitis in M. chimera endocarditis was 19.2%. This number is likely low as these patients are not screened for visual symptoms and critically ill, a prospective screening study would better define the true prevalence rate.
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.