Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient
In this case, a 76-year-old female presented with 3–4 days of fever with no other localizing signs. Notably, she had had an untreated Fusobacterium bacteraemia approximately 8 weeks prior to admission. She underwent abdominal imaging which demonstrated a liver abscess and had percutaneous drainage o...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SMC MEDIA SRL
2020-07-01
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| Series: | European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ejcrim.com/index.php/EJCRIM/article/view/1741 |
| _version_ | 1818316398020001792 |
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| author | Neeraja Swaminathan Francisco Aguilar |
| author_facet | Neeraja Swaminathan Francisco Aguilar |
| author_sort | Neeraja Swaminathan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In this case, a 76-year-old female presented with 3–4 days of fever with no other localizing signs. Notably, she had had an untreated Fusobacterium bacteraemia approximately 8 weeks prior to admission. She underwent abdominal imaging which demonstrated a liver abscess and had percutaneous drainage of the same. Blood and pus cultures both grew Fusobacterium nucleatum, which is an unusual organism to be associated with a liver abscess, especially in an immunocompetent host with no risk factors for this condition. Interestingly, this patient did not have any history of dental work, instrumentation, liver function test (LFT) abnormalities and no extrahepatic source for the abscess. This case highlights the importance of having a high index of clinical suspicion for an occult source of infection and emphasizes the importance of following up on cultures even after discharge of a patient, since anaerobic infections such as those caused by Fusobacterium can have a largely indolent course. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T09:20:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6962364c766a4ba2b057be1ba7cc1b6c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2284-2594 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T09:20:47Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | SMC MEDIA SRL |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-6962364c766a4ba2b057be1ba7cc1b6c2022-12-21T23:52:43ZengSMC MEDIA SRLEuropean Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine2284-25942020-07-0110.12890/2020_0017411373Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent PatientNeeraja Swaminathan0Francisco Aguilar1Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, USAAlbert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, USAIn this case, a 76-year-old female presented with 3–4 days of fever with no other localizing signs. Notably, she had had an untreated Fusobacterium bacteraemia approximately 8 weeks prior to admission. She underwent abdominal imaging which demonstrated a liver abscess and had percutaneous drainage of the same. Blood and pus cultures both grew Fusobacterium nucleatum, which is an unusual organism to be associated with a liver abscess, especially in an immunocompetent host with no risk factors for this condition. Interestingly, this patient did not have any history of dental work, instrumentation, liver function test (LFT) abnormalities and no extrahepatic source for the abscess. This case highlights the importance of having a high index of clinical suspicion for an occult source of infection and emphasizes the importance of following up on cultures even after discharge of a patient, since anaerobic infections such as those caused by Fusobacterium can have a largely indolent course.https://www.ejcrim.com/index.php/EJCRIM/article/view/1741pyogenic liver abscessfusobacterium |
| spellingShingle | Neeraja Swaminathan Francisco Aguilar Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine pyogenic liver abscess fusobacterium |
| title | Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient |
| title_full | Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient |
| title_fullStr | Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient |
| title_short | Cryptogenic Pyogenic Liver Abscess Due to Fusobacterium nucleatum in an Immunocompetent Patient |
| title_sort | cryptogenic pyogenic liver abscess due to fusobacterium nucleatum in an immunocompetent patient |
| topic | pyogenic liver abscess fusobacterium |
| url | https://www.ejcrim.com/index.php/EJCRIM/article/view/1741 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT neerajaswaminathan cryptogenicpyogenicliverabscessduetofusobacteriumnucleatuminanimmunocompetentpatient AT franciscoaguilar cryptogenicpyogenicliverabscessduetofusobacteriumnucleatuminanimmunocompetentpatient |