Catheter-related bloodstream Mycobacterium wolinskyi infection in an umbilical cord blood transplant recipient: a case report

BACKGROUND: Catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI), caused by rapidly growing mycobacteria (RGM), is a rare infectious complication in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients and can often be misdiagnosed as Gram-positive rod (GPR) bacteremia. CASE PRESENTATION: We present a case of CRBSI caused by Mycobacterium wolinskyi, a rare RGM, in a 44-year-old female patient who received an umbilical cord blood transplant. CONCLUSIONS: Rapidly growing mycobacteria can stain as GPRs and may grow in routine blood culture media after 3-4 days of incubation. These features are not widely known to clinicians, and acid-fast staining is therefore recommended when unidentifiable GPRs are detected in blood cultures, especially in immunocompromised patients, such as those with hematologic malignancies or intravascular devices.