Atypical mycobacteriosis as a complication of talc pneumoconiosis

A 57 year old man, receiving compensation for talc pneumoconiosis since 1977, was admitted to hospital for the first time in 1987, with symptoms of weight loss, fever, dyspnoea and productive cough. A chest roentgenogram showed bilateral cavitation. Two years later, Mycobacterium xenopi was found in sputum cultures. Despite specific oral antibiotherapy, the patient's health deteriorated and he died in 1990. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of an association of talcosis with a M. xenopi pneumonia. The relative timing of the two diseases suggests that talc pneumoconiosis predisposed to the infection by M. xenopi.