Tuberculoid lymphadenitis due toMycobacterium chelonei

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Abstract
An 8-year-old boy developed cervical lymphadenitis four months after an injection of dental anaesthetic. Histology of the lymphatic tissue showed a tuberculoid granulomatous reaction with scanty acid-fast bacilli.Mycobacterium cheloneiwas isolated in pure culture (NCTC 10882). The patient showed specific skin hypersensitivity to an extract ofM. chelonei, but not to that ofM. ranae.This is thought to be the first recorded case of lymphadenitis in man caused byM. chelonei; it adds another possibility to be considered in the differential diagnosis of `a lump in the neck'.