Abstract
On June 18, 1997, a sub-adult Kemp's Ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtle was caught in the Pocomock River by a fisherman and
presented to the Marine Animal Rescue Program (MARP) of the National Aquarium in Baltimore. This turtle had ulcerative shell lesions, flipper wounds, and a defect
of the maxillary beak. Biopsies of skin and shell lesions showed pyogranulomatous epidermitis of both the skin and flippers, concordant with primary fungal and
secondary bacterial infection.
Over the next four months the lesions slowly improved with the exception of a raised nodule on the dorsum of the right fore flipper. A sudden
lameness and soft tissue swelling at the left humero-ulnar joint was also noted. Lysis of the distal humerus became evident on radiographs four weeks later,
prompting surgical debridement and lavage. Impression smears of tissues obtained from both the left joint and the right flipper nodule showed acid-fast bacilli,
indicating probable systemic infection. Pure colonies of Mycobacterium chelonae were obtained from the joint material.
Mycobacterium chelonae is commonly found in freshwater turtles. Our literature search has shown the genus, but not this species, has
been reported in sea turtles. Of the mycobacterial infections that have been documented in sea turtles, none have been associated with septic arthritis. Atypical,
fast growing mycobacterium, including M. marinum, M. fortuitum, and M. chelonae, are ubiquitous in nature and are not normally considered to be
pathogenic. Infections are thought to occur following trauma to the skin or deeper tissues, or exposure of an immunoincompetent animal to the organism, all of
which were evident in this sea turtle. Due to the high probability of systemic infection, the difficulties of treating such a condition, the potential for
zoonosis, and the deteriorating condition of the animal, humane euthanasia was elected. Post-mortem examination revealed no gross abnormalities, however,
Mycobacterium spp. were isolated from spleen, liver, kidney, pericardium, and lung.