Nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM)
lung diseases are an emerging cause of pulmonary
infection, becoming more common in the clinical setting as incidence of NTM
lung diseases steadily increases worldwide.
Trace elements are essential
micronutrients and are known to play many important roles in
infectious diseases. We investigated the concentrations of
trace elements in patients with NTM
lung disease and compared these values to patients with
pulmonary tuberculosis and healthy controls. A case-control study was conducted to evaluate the serum
trace element concentrations in 95 patients with NTM
lung disease, 97 patients with
pulmonary tuberculosis, and 99 healthy control subjects. The serum concentrations of 7
trace elements (
cobalt,
copper,
chromium,
manganese,
molybdenum,
selenium, and
zinc) were measured using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. We also analyzed demographic data, clinical outcomes, and other biochemical parameters. The median serum concentrations of
copper and
molybdenum were higher in patients with NTM
lung disease (109 vs. 91 μg/dL, p < 0.001 and 1.70 vs. 0.96 μg/L, p < 0.001). In contrast, the median serum concentrations of
selenium and
zinc were significantly lower in patients with NTM
lung disease than in healthy controls (105 vs. 115 μg/L, p < 0.001 and 94 vs. 102 μg/dL, p < 0.001). Compared to patients with
pulmonary tuberculosis, the serum concentrations of
molybdenum and
zinc were higher in patients with NTM
lung disease, while
cobalt and
copper concentrations were lower (p < 0.001). Correlations among
trace element concentrations were observed (
copper and
zinc, r = -0.367;
cobalt and
molybdenum, r = -0.360;
selenium and
zinc, r = 0.335; and
manganese and
zinc, r = 0.327, respectively). None of the 7
trace elements were associated with treatment outcomes. Patients with NTM
lung disease showed different serum
trace element concentrations. Our study indicates that altered
trace element status is associated with mycobacterial disease. Further study investigating the clinical significance of individual
trace elements and their association with nutritional status in patients with NTM
lung disease would be required.