Could possum bites be spreading Buruli ulcer?

A patient in south-east Victoria presented to his GP with a lesion on his finger six months after being bitten by a 'sickly' possum
Lesion before beginning rifampicin and clarithromycin (A). Paradoxical flare of pain and swelling midway through antibiotic course (B).

Clinicians are reporting the case of a Victorian patient they believe contracted Buruli ulcer from a possum bite, rather than through an infected mosquito.

The previously well 81-year-old presented to his GP with a shallow, red ulcer on the dorsum of his left index finger.