Relapsing Kocuria varians Peritonitis in a Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis Patient

Rou, Woo Sun; Lee, Hyo Keun; Kwak, Yee Gyung; Han, Sang Youb; Han, Kum Hyun

Abstract

Kocuria species are the normal flora of skin, mucosa and oropharynx, and can be the causative organisms of complications associated with intravenous catheterization, ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, and ventricular shunt. We report a case of relapsing peritonitis by Kocuria varians in a patient undergoing continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). A 62 year old woman was admitted to the hospital with a complaint of abdominal pain and a turbid peritoneal dialysate. The patient was treated with a combination of intraperitoneal antibiotics. A culture of the peritoneal dialysate revealed K. varians, and the patient was discharged after she showed improvement with the treatment. Although the organism was sensitive to the administered antibiotics, the patient experienced 2 episodes of peritonitis. This continuing recurrence could be attributed to an insufficient treatment period or biofilm formation. Therefore, the patient underwent further treatment with intraperitoneal antibiotics and showed no recurrence for 1 year thereafter. This is the first report of relapsing peritonitis by K. varians. Although peritonitis caused by rare pathogens has been described recently, K. varians is known to have a low pathogenecity and occurs rarely. The findings in this case emphasize the importance of careful consideration on the rare pathogen and administration of the appropriate antibiotics for a sufficient duration.