Fish TB, Please, nead advise!

[sillyputty]

GN,
The good news on that is that the fish TB from what I have read is not the same as lung tuberculosis. The bacteria is related but causes granulomas on the skin and if not treated can apparently get into the bone and joints. So still very nasty, but not quite as bad. Treatment can still be months of antibiotics.

 

[JSchmidt]

As far as testing the water.. I really dont know if Mycobacterium species reside in any part of the system other than within the fish. (You may try looking for info on this disease's "reservoir" in google.) I do not believe that they last very long outside of tissue and I have not come across any info that says they are released into the water by the fish or through feces.
>Sarah

Sarah, I thought, when I was researching mycobacterial infections, that the bacteria existed in large numbers in a free-floating state. (I remember this because mycobacterial infections like fish TB were one of the few instances where UV sterilizer units would actually help limite the spread of infection.)

Jim

 

[got_nailed]

That’s all I know on TB. I have not read any thing on fish TB.

 

[fishfreaks]

what is this TB? so confused

 

[Samala]

Jim, after chewing on this during dinner I've reconsidered that marinum must have a free floating state or stage. Otherwise, there wouldnt be such an emphasis in preventing cross contamination between infected and non-infected systems. It seems that researchers are able to grow marinum within fish cells and in culture media/solution, so it must be able to live outside of fish tissue or serum for some amount of time. I imagine this means that we could assay the water from an infected system.. but of course we're back to the question of how to do that from a hobbyist level.

Got Nailed.. your experience with 'whale TB' is interesting. I see reports and papers on skin lesions in cetaceans sometimes and a search turned up lots of hits. Interestingly, the Mycobacterium indicated as usually responsible was M. marinum, the same predominant species that causes fish TB cases. I once found a spotted eagle ray on a beach in Florida that had skin lesions similar to marinum infections and I wondered if that's what it was... but we'll never know for that one.

Oh and I thought I would add just a little more.. I was talking to my friend Rich today, the guy who had marinum infection a few years ago and got over it with seven months of antibiotics. Well, its back! He's not sure if its resurfaced because he's stressed or if its a new infection, but its definitely myco back in his body. Apparently the infectious disease doc he goes too was just delighted to have another case to study.

 

[JSchmidt]

I thought that one of the defining characteristics of mycobacteria was a hard, waxy cell wall, that makes it harder to kill by drying, thru antibiotics, etc. I would guess that such a cell would be able to do OK outside of a host for some time.

I'm not a microbiologist, but I did sleep in a Holiday Inn last night!

Jim

 

[ROLLIN]

what is this TB? so confused

"Fish tuberculosis". A disease that you do not want to get in your tanks. It can be transmitted to you through cuts, scrapes, etc. It looks like purple blisters on humans. I have read that fish TB is one of the most common causes of fish deaths, but many people do not realize it.

 

[sillyputty]

Jim, I know nothing about the make up of bacteria but I have read when sterilizing a tank after exposure to use bleach and then spray on rubbing alcohol and let dry. They must be really tough little bugs!
The more I read about all this the more serious it becomes. Samala, I do really, really wish there was a way for the home hobbyist to determine this. It seems as though this hobby is getting more popular. People really should be more aware of this. I do think the chances of actually getting it are minimal when considering how many hobbyists there are but it still should be something to be aware of.

 

[Snake Eyez]

This is some what off subject.

The pill eats away at your liver making you get blood tests every 2 weeks to a month depending on your body. The stuff inside INH is part antibiotics and part a low grade form of TB.

I don't think this information is correct. The drug is metabolized by the liver and can harm liver because of this. Same with alcohol and tylenol. So it doesn't eat away at the liver and most people don't have a problem with this medication.

And I've never heard of this "low grade form of TB." The species of Myco. doesn't have any form of vaccination as this low grade form would indicate. Myco are slow growing bacteria and can be very difficult to treat as they develop resistance quickly. That is why some people are visited 3 times a day and given their medication on the spot since missing or not taking the drugs can result in a much more difficult infection.

I don't want to be an *** about it, but I don't want to see people misinformed by this.