A case report of Anaerobiospirillum causing septicemia

Case report: Anaerobiospirillum prosthetic joint infection in a heart transplant recipient

Background

We report a case of prosthetic hip joint infection in a heart transplant recipient due to Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens, a genus of spiral-shaped curved anaerobic gram-negative rod which colonizes the gastrointestinal tract of cats and dogs. Invasive infections in humans are rare and typically occur in immunocompromised hosts.

Case presentation

A 65-year-old male dog breeder with a history of rheumatoid arthritis, bilateral hip arthroplasties, and non-ischemic cardiomyopathy with a heart transplant 10 years ago presented with a three month history of progressive left hip pain and frank purulence on hip aspiration. He underwent irrigation and debridement of the left hip and one-stage revision with hardware exchange. Although gram stain and culture from synovial fluid and intraoperative cultures were initially negative, anaerobic cultures from tissue specimens later grew a spiral-shaped gram-negative rod, identified as Anaerobiospirillum spp. by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The patient was treated with ceftriaxone 2 g daily for 6 weeks with a good response to treatment. A similar organism was unable to be isolated from culture of 2 of the patient’s dogs, however, they were thought to be the most likely source of his infection.

Conclusion

Anaerobiospirillum spp. should be considered in immunocompromised patients with exposure to dogs or cats who present with bacteremia, gastrointestinal infection, pyomyositis, or prosthetic joint infections, especially in cases of culture-negative or with anaerobic culture growth.

MALDI-TOF MS for rapid diagnosis of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens, an unusual causative agent of bacteraemia in humans. Two case reports and literature review

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens is a gram-negative anaerobic spiral rod which is part of the normal flora of dogs and cats and can produce bacteraemia and diarrhoea in humans. In this report we describe two cases of bacteraemia caused by A. succiniciproducens which was successfully identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). We present a comprehensive literature review of 48 cases of A. succiniciproducens bacteraemia in which we describe previous underlying conditions, clinical presentations, identification methodology and antibiotic susceptibility data.

Bloodstream infection with Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens: a potentially lethal infection

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens (A succiniciproducens), a spiral, Gram-negative anaerobic rod which is part of the normal intestinal flora of cats and dogs, has rarely been reported as a cause of bacteremia and diarrhea in humans, particularly in immunocompromised hosts. Although it can be associated with significant mortality, the full extent of its pathogenicity, clinical spectrum, and optimal therapy remain to be determined. We review the available literature on microbiology, clinical manifestations, and treatment options for Anaerobiospirillum infection.

First report of treatment of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bloodstream infection with levofloxacin

The full extent of the clinical spectrum and optimal therapy of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens infections remains to be determined. We describe the first case of bloodstream infection (BSI) due to A. succiniciproducens in an asymptomatic elderly male with poor dentition that was treated with levofloxacin.

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteraemia in a patient with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia

A 17-year-old man with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia had fever and diarrhoea during a febrile neutropenic episode. A spiral-shaped, Gram-negative anaerobic bacterium was isolated from blood, and confirmed as Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens by 16S rRNA sequencing. The patient responded to imipenem.

Ileocolitis associated with Anaerobiospirillum in cats

Ileocolitis associated with spiral bacteria identified as an Anaerobiospirillum sp. was found in six cats. Two cats had acute onset of gastrointestinal signs characterized by vomiting and diarrhea in one cat and vomiting in another cat, one cat had chronic diarrhea that was refractory to medical therapy; one cat had acute onset of anorexia and lethargy, and two cats had clinical signs that were not related to the gastrointestinal tract. The presence of an Anaerobiospirillum sp. was demonstrated on the basis of ultrastructural morphology of spiral bacteria associated with intestinal lesions and PCR amplification of a genus-specific 16S rRNA gene from affected tissues from each cat. The colons of three clinically healthy cats without lesions and one cat with mild colitis not associated with spiral bacteria were negative for Anaerobiospirillum spp. in the same assay. Comparative nucleotide sequence analysis of cloned PCR products from three affected cats further suggested that the spiral bacteria were closely related to Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens.

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteraemia

This report describes a case of bacteraemia caused by Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens. Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens is a rare cause of bacteraemia in humans, and when encountered usually occurs in immunocompromised patients. The organism is an anaerobic, spiral shaped, Gram negative bacillus with bipolar tufts of flagella. In this report, the morphology, with special reference to electron microscopic features, culture characteristics, and antimicrobial susceptibility are described.

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteremia in a young child

We report a case of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteremia in a young child who had no underlying disease. The case should alert microbiologists and physicians to an uncommon organism that is very often resistant to antibiotics normally prescribed empirically for infections caused by organisms of similar morphology and characteristics such as Campylobacter species.

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens septicaemia: important aspects of diagnosis and management

Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens is a rare cause of septicaemia. A 63-year-old woman with liver cirrhosis and a history of melaena developed A. succiniciprodocens septicaemia. She owned two pet dogs and a cat. Despite supportive management and antibiotic treatment supported by in vivo testing, the patient died. The characteristics identification and antimicrobial susceptibility of A. succiniciproducens are discussed and previous reported underlying disease reviewed.

Three cases of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteremia confirmed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing

We describe three cases of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens bacteremia from Australia. We believe one of these cases represents the first report of A. succiniciproducens bacteremia in a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individual. The other two patients had an underlying disorder (one patient had bleeding esophageal varices complicating alcohol liver disease and one patient had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma). A motile, gram-negative, spiral anaerobe was isolated by culturing blood from all patients. Electron microscopy showed a curved bacterium with bipolar tufts of flagella resembling Anaerobiospirillum spp. Sequencing of the 16S rRNA genes of the isolates revealed no close relatives (organisms likely to be in the same genus) in the sequence databases, nor were any sequence data available forA. succiniciproducens. This report presents for the first time the 16S rRNA gene sequence of the type strain of A. succiniciproducens, strain ATCC 29305. Two of the three clinical isolates have sequences identical to that of the type strain, while the sequence of the other strain differs from that of the type strain at 4 nucleotides.

First reported African case of Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens septicemia

The first reported African case of septicemia caused by Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens is presented. The source of the infection was not identified. The clinical presentation and relative risk factors of the infection, and biochemical characteristics and antimicrobial susceptibility of the organism are described. Recommendations on appropriate antimicrobial therapy and postinfection sequelae are discussed.

An evaluation of inpatient consultations conducted by clinical microbiologists in a teaching hospital

A systematic procedure for conducting consultations by clinical microbiologists requested by their clinical colleagues is described. The method was evaluated over a period of 17 months and involved sequential consultations related to 229 patients with known or probable infections. An attempt was made to elucidate the contributions of the clinical microbiologists in achieving a better understanding of the problems experienced in this particular setting and which in turn led to improved management of patients. It is hoped that this paper may provide a practical working framework for clinical microbiologists in the care of patients suffering from infection.

Description of a medium for isolating Anaerobiospirillum spp., a possible cause of zoonotic disease, from diarrheal feces and blood of humans and use of the medium in a survey of human, canine, and feline feces

Anaerobiospirillum spp., motile, spiral anaerobic bacteria, have been implicated as a cause of diarrhea and bacteremia in humans. Anaerobiospirillumlike organisms and Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens were reported from 17 cases of diarrhea. Sixteen of the patients did not have any underlying disorders and recovered from the infection; the other one, who had a heart defect, did not. The formulation of a selective medium for Anaerobiospirillum spp. has enabled a survey of human, cat, and dog feces as possible sources for these anaerobic bacteria. Anaerobiospirillum spp. were not isolated from 527 "normal" human feces but were found in both cat and dog feces. We also describe biochemical tests and API ZYM results of A. succiniciproducens and anaerobiospirillumlike organisms.