Bacillary angiomatosis and other Bartonella species infections

Infections with organisms of the genus Bartonella, for many years important only in South and Central America, have assumed significance in developing countries, especially in conjunction with the advent of the pandemic of the human immunodeficiency virus infection. New molecular and culture techniques have determined that these organisms cause new diseases such as bacillary angiomatosis as well as disease the etiology of which have been unknown such as cat scratch disease. In this article, the microbiology, pathogenesis, histopathology and clinical manifestataions of diseases caused by these organisms are discussed.