Hussain, ABM Arad;
Hamdallah, Hanady;
Ponnuswamy, Aravind;
(2022)
An unusual case of empyema with septicaemia secondary to eggerthella lenta.
Journal of Clinical Images and Medical Case Reports
, 3
(3)
, Article 1722. 10.52768/2766-7820/1722.
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Abstract
Eggerthella lenta is an anaerobic, non-spore-forming, nonmotile, gram-positive bacillus commensal in human intestine. It causes genitourinary tract infection, abscess, and wound infection but can lead to disseminated life-threatening septicemia. Risk factors to develop infection secondary to E. Lenta are immunocompromised and elderly patients with pre-existing co-morbidities such as cancer and diabetes mellitus. A 53-year-old man otherwise fit and healthy presented with pleuritic chest pain, cough, and breathlessness associated with shivering and the patient had diminished air entry on his left side of his chest. Blood workup revealed raised WBC count elevated C reactive protein (CRP). Chest radiograph revealed opacification of the left hemithorax, two distinct fluid levels and a computed tomography (CT) scan of his chest revealed loculated left sided empyema. Diagnostic aspiration revealed Pleural fluid indicated the presence of streptococcus anginosus and E. Lenta. Blood culture yielded the unusual growth of E. lenta. The patient was admitted to the intensive care unit and required drainage of the left pleural cavity with an intercostal drain. He was treated empirically with intravenous benzylpenicillin and oral clarithromycin. intravenous piperacillin/tazobactam and metronidazole. Within three days of starting piperacillin/tazobactam and metronidazole, a good clinical response to the therapy was observed. Follow up in clinic confirmed good resolution of the left sided empyema. The case report highlights E. Lenta as potential cause of septicemia following Pneumonia and empyema responding well to intercostal drainage and broad-spectrum antibiotics.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | An unusual case of empyema with septicaemia secondary to eggerthella lenta |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.52768/2766-7820/1722 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.52768/2766-7820/1722 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Keywords: | eggerthella lenta; empyema; septicaemia |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Primary Care and Population Health |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10214227 |
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