Case report: Anaerobiospirillum prosthetic joint infection in a heart transplant recipient

Abstract

Background We report a case of prosthetic hip joint infection in a heart transplant recipient due to Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens, a genus of spiral-shaped curved anaerobic gram-negative rod which colonizes the gastrointestinal tract of cats and dogs. Invasive infections in humans are rare and typically occur in immunocompromised hosts. Case presentation A 65-year-old male dog breeder with a history of rheumatoid arthritis, bilateral hip arthroplasties, and non-ischemic cardiomyopathy with a heart transplant 10 years ago presented with a three month history of progressive left hip pain and frank purulence on hip aspiration. He underwent irrigation and debridement of the left hip and one-stage revision with hardware exchange. Although gram stain and culture from synovial fluid and intraoperative cultures were initially negative, anaerobic cultures from tissue specimens later grew a spiral-shaped gram-negative rod, identified as Anaerobiospirillum spp. by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The patient was treated with ceftriaxone 2 g daily for 6 weeks with a good response to treatment. A similar organism was unable to be isolated from culture of 2 of the patient’s dogs, however, they were thought to be the most likely source of his infection. Conclusion Anaerobiospirillum spp . should be considered in immunocompromised patients with exposure to dogs or cats who present with bacteremia, gastrointestinal infection, pyomyositis, or prosthetic joint infections, especially in cases of culture-negative or with anaerobic culture growth.

Antibacterial Designs for Implantable Medical Devices: Evolutions and Challenges

“…Device-associated infections become even stickier because of those host-specific, transient, or resident factors ( Table 3 ) [ 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 ]. The onset of DAI is not predictable, it can onset years after implantation (Cases 1 through 6 in Table 3 ).…”

“…Listeria monocytogenes , a common organism associated with unpasteurized dairy products (e.g., deli meats and unpasteurized cheeses), can induce a periprosthetic joint infection in a patient with a history of diabetes mellitus, asthma, and psoriatic arthritis [ 75 ]. Anaerobiospirillum succiniciproducens , a common settler in the gastrointestinal tract of cats and dogs, can induce a prosthetic hip joint infection in an immunocompromised patient [ 76 ]. DAIs are normally initiated by bacterial seeding and as a result tissue integration will be impaired quickly; however, some cases failed to identify any organism by cultures [ 77 , 78 ] and tissue integration was intact after being infected [ 79 ].…”