Korean J Dermatol.  2001 Jun;39(6):688-692.

A Case of Sporotrichoid Fish Tank Granuloma

• Kim JY
• Lee JB
• Kim SJ
• Lee SC
• Won YH
• Kim JP
• Kee SJ
• Shin JH

Abstract

Mycobacterium marinum, group I photochromogen, is an atypical mycobacterium living in an aquatic environment including swimming pools, lagoon, lake, or fish tanks. Infections with M. marinum are not common, so only three cases have been reported in Korea. In general, skin lesions evolve as a solitary nodule or pustule but occasionally sporotrichoid spreading along the course of lymphatic vessels occurs. A 46-year-old woman visited our department with 2X1.5cm sized erythmatous ulcerated nodule on her right hand dorsum and several rice-sized subcutaneous nodules along the ascending course of lymphatic vessels on her right forearm. She had cleaned fish tank two months before the skin lesion developed. A AFB-positive microorganism was isolated by culture of the tissue specimen, which grew slowly at 30degrees C and those colonies showed yellowish color after light exposure on Ogawa medium. This microorganism was confirmed as M. marinum by polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of sporotrichoid granuloma due to M marinum infection occurred in association with fish tank in Korea.

Keyword

M. marinum; Sporotrichoid granuloma

MeSH Terms

Female
Forearm
Granuloma*
Hand
Humans
Korea
Lakes
Lymphatic Vessels
Middle Aged
Mycobacterium marinum
Nontuberculous Mycobacteria
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Restriction Mapping
Skin
Swimming Pools
Ulcer