Korean J Clin Microbiol.  2011 Sep;14(3):110-114. 10.5145/KJCM.2011.14.3.110.

Campylobacter jejuni Bacteremia in a Healthy Child

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. leehejo@khmc.or.kr
  • 2Department of Pediatrics, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract

Campylobacter jejuni is one of the important bacterial pathogens causing entero-invasive diarrhea; however, C. jejuni infection is rarely complicated by bacteremia or extra-intestinal localization. In the domestic literature, the majority of the relevant reports have focused on Campylobacter fetus, which causes bacteremia more frequently than enteritis, but there are no reports of C. jejuni bacteremia in Korea. We present the case of a 13-year-old girl who presented with abdominal pain. Blood cultures revealed curved Gram- negative bacilli and small, mucoid, gray colonies on blood agar plates at 37degrees C. Biochemical tests showed oxidase-positive colonies. To confirm the species, 16S rRNA sequence analysis was performed. The isolate exhibited 99.7% homology to C. jejuni subsp. jejuni. The patient was treated with third-generation cephalosporin and aminoglycoside and had negative blood cultures after three days of treatment. She fully recovered within four days with no complications.

Keyword

Campylobacter jejuni; Bacteremia; Blood culture; 16s rRNA sequence analysis

MeSH Terms

Abdominal Pain
Adolescent
Agar
Bacteremia
Campylobacter
Campylobacter fetus
Campylobacter jejuni
Child
Enteritis
Humans
Korea
Sequence Analysis
Agar

Figure

  • Fig. 1. Microscopic findings of Campylobacter jejuni isolated from the blood culture showing slightly curved gram-negative bacilli (Gram stain, ×1,000).


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