[Incidence and significance of lung diseases caused by tuberculosis bacteria and atypical mycobacteria in East Germany].

The number of new cases of pulmonary mycobacterial diseases registered in the GDR was 1,574 in the year 1982, 1,525 in 1983, and 1,404, as a preliminary result, in 1984. That is an incidence rate per 100,000 population of 9.4, 9.1, and 8.4, respectively. In 1982 Mycobacterium bovis was isolated in 4.6% of all newly diagnosed pulmonary cases, and in 1983 and 1984 a certain decrease became evident, namely to 3.5 and 3.1%, respectively. The number of patients with recognized diseases caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria was 20 in 1982 and 33 in 1983, which equals 1.3 and 2.2%, respectively, of the newly diagnosed bacillary cases. In causing a mycobacteriosis M. kansasii is the most important potential pathogenic species of nontuberculous mycobacteria, followed by M. xenopi. Nine tenths of the patients with mycobacteriosis were men. About eighty per cent of the male patients were older than 50 years. The absolute number of newly diagnosed lung diseases caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria in the GDR was nearly the same during the last years: there were 20 to 33 patients per year.