Recently, I spoke with a friendly neighbor who is a pet owner and a vet. We were talking about how pets have been diagnosed with various flus, including H1N1 and various co-infections like Mycoplasma felis. She also noted how Mycoplasma felis is zoonotic and how in rare cases it causes arthritis in humans. See this article for more:
Mycoplasma felis in Septic Arthritis in a Patient with Hypergammaglobulinemia
It’s interesting that both human and feline patients who were diagnosed with these particular mycobacteria were treated with doxycycline sufficiently so that symptoms abated; it remains to be seen if these treatments were effective in the long term in eradicating arthritic problems. For more:
H1N1 Virus Still Infecting Pets, Domestic Animals
I hope this is interesting and helpful to both patients and spine researchers. It appears that mycobacteria continue to be an elusive, insidious and curious culprit for many diseases; those involving joints and other parts of our precious bodies!