A bumpy road to the diagnosis of a Kytococcus schroeteri shunt infection

Bacteraemia Caused by Kytococcus schroeteri in a Pneumonia Patient

“…A former case report described a similar phenomenon in which identification was hampered because the microorganism was misidentified as Gramnegative cocci [1]. The authors attributed the cause of the abnormal Gram stain reaction to treatment with β-lactams or the inflamed tissue from which the K. schroeteri was isolated [1]. However, when we performed routine Gram staining for the type strain DSM 13884 T , we also observed Gram-variable results.…”

“…Though K. schroeteri is a part of the normal human skin flora, it causes systemic human infections associated with prosthetic devices and immunodeficiency. To date, K. schroeteri has been identified as a human pathogen in 17 cases; prosthetic valve endocarditis was the most common clinical presentation (n=8) [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13], followed by pneumonia in immunocompromised patients (n=5) [14][15][16][17], ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection (n=2) [1,18], postoperative spondylodiscitis (n=1) [19], and implantrelated septic arthritis (n=1) [20]. K. schroeteri is a Gram-positive coccus; however, the isolate GNKS01 showed Gram-variable results in routine Gram staining.…”

“…K. schroeteri is a Gram-positive coccus; however, the isolate GNKS01 showed Gram-variable results in routine Gram staining. A former case report described a similar phenomenon in which identification was hampered because the microorganism was misidentified as Gramnegative cocci [1]. The authors attributed the cause of the abnormal Gram stain reaction to treatment with β-lactams or the inflamed tissue from which the K. schroeteri was isolated [1].…”

“…Kytococci are a part of the normal skin microbiota of humans and can cause infections, particularly in patients with prosthetic devices or immunodeficiency. Due to insufficient identification methods and an intrinsic resistance to several β-lactams, infections due to Kytococci are a challenge to clinical microbiologists and clinicians [1]. Here, we report the first Korean case of bacteraemia due to Kytococcus schroeteri in a patient with pneumonia.…”

Insight into Kytococcus schroeteri Infection Management: A Case Report and Review

“…Infections with Kytococcus schroeteri are uncommon (only 20 publications in the last 17 years [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]), and since the species itself has only recently been discovered, the information that is now available for physicians remains scarce. Treatment encompasses two main challenges-a difficult identification process and consistent antibiotic resistance.…”