Completed Research

Dr. Joseph Falkinham, III

Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia

NTMir awarded a Rapid Information Pilot Study (RIPS)™ grant to Dr. Joseph Falkinham, III, at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia to study household water systems as a source of pulmonary NTM infection. Dr. Falkinham compared the NTM bacteria found in patients’ lungs with the NTM bacteria in each patient’s home to determine if they are the same strain.

The results of this study provided important information regarding the risk factors associated with household water and NTM lung infection. In 75% of tested patients, the household water was determined to be the infection source. Additionally, the study demonstrated the correlation between water heater temperature and amount of NTM in the water, leading to the conclusion that higher water temperatures reduce the amount of NTM found in the tap water.

National Institute of Allergy and Infection Disease (NIH)

Kaiser Permanente of Southern California
Click here to view published study results

NTMir awarded a RIPS™ grant jointly to National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) and Kaiser Permanente of Southern California (Kaiser), a private healthcare provider, to study the prevalence, prevalence trends, and co-morbidities of pulmonary NTM disease. This study evaluated the prevalence of NTM within a closed healthcare system, and represented a unique partnership between a federal government agency (NIAID), a private healthcare system (Kaiser), and a disease-centered not-for-profit organization (NTMir).

The study demonstrated the increasing prevalence of pulmonary NTM disease, and led NIAID to expand the study. The results were published in a leading medical journal.

Dr. Marcel Behr

McGill University
Montreal, Canada

NTMir awarded its first international RIPS™ grant to Dr. Marcel Behr at Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center in Montreal, Quebec. Dr. Behr completed the genome sequencing of M. avium intracellulare, which may help physicians and researchers determine better treatments for NTM lung infection.

The results of this project are now published on the Internet and available to researchers around the world. Since its publication, researchers in Korea have continued the genotyping of other strains of NTM, which similarly may aid in determining better and more targeted treatments, and may lead to a better understanding of how pulmonary NTM infection may differ from host to host, depending on the specific strain.

Dr. Alexandra Quittner

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Miami, Florida

Dr. Quittner conducted open-ended interviews with pulmonary NTM patients to determine what content should be queried and analyzed in a patient quality-of-life survey. Until now, no disease-specific health-related quality of life measures have been available for pulmonary NTM patients.

This study developed a module for patients with NTM which complements the quality-of-life survey currently used for patients with Bronchiectasis. This new measure, developed in accordance with FDA guidelines, may be used in clinical trials to determine the effects of the drug being studied on the patient, and allows health care providers to monitor their patients’ health status and functioning over time.

At the American Thoracic Society International Conference in May, Amy Leitman from NTM Info & Research, along with Dr. Mehdi Mirsaeidi from the University of Miami, presented the results of a survey on geographic diversity of nontuberculous mycobacteria species among NTM patients in the United States.

The survey, which was conducted in late 2015 and early 2016, is to our knowledge the first study in the United States to map the geographic diversity of NTM on the state-to-state level. The results were presented at a poster session and discussion which featured more than a dozen posters on various subjects related to NTM lung disease.

For more detailed information and a summary of the study results, click here to view the poster that was displayed