Infection status and diagnostic methods progress of nontuberculous mycobacteria

In recent years, with the development of detection technology and environmental changes, the incidence of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) continues to increase, and even exceeds that of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) in some regions. NTM can infect various parts of the human body, among which lung infection is the most common, called NTM lung disease. Because the disease often causes tuberculosis poisoning symptoms similar to tuberculosis, it is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis. However, the treatment regimens are obviously different, so it is very important to identify NTM quickly and accurately for early diagnosis and treatment of NTB infections. Traditional methods such as bacterial smear and bacterial culture are insensitive and time-consuming. With the development of molecular diagnostic technology, new technologies such as real-time fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), DNA sequencing, gene chip technology (GCT) have been used for identifying and distinguishing NTM. This article mainly summarizes the current status and the diagnosis methods of NTM infection.