Melioidosis: An emerging infection in Taiwan?

From January 1982 to May 2000, 17 infections caused by Burkholderia pseudom allei were diagnosed in 15 patients in Taiwan; almost all the infections we re diagnosed from 1994 to May 2000. Of the 15 patients, 9 (60%) had underly ing diseases, and 10 (67%) had bacteremic pneumonia. Thirteen (76%) episode s of infection were considered indigenous. Four patients died of melioidosi s. Seventeen B. pseudomallei isolates, recovered from eight patients from N ovember 1996 to May 2000, were analyzed to determine their in vitro suscept ibilities to 14 antimicrobial agents, cellular fatty acid and biochemical r eaction profiles, and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA patterns. Eight st rains (highly related isolates) were identified. All isolates were arabinos e non-assimilators and were susceptible to amoxicillin-clavulanate, piperac illin-tazobactam, imipenem, and meropenem. No spread of the strain was docu mented.