Nontuberculous Mycobacteria ( NTM ) and Tuberculosis : A Changing of the Guard in the 21 st Century ?

Disease due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis has been the most consistent, prevalent and lethal pathogen of mankind for the past 2,000 years. There was a crescendo of tuberculosis (TB) in Europe and North America during the recent centuries of the Industrial Revolution associated with the growth of urban density, crowded dwellings, air pollution and tobacco abuse. Dramatic references to TB included “Consumption”, “The Captain of All These Men of Death” or “The White Plague”.