title: Acalculous cholecystitis and septicemia caused by non-O1 Vibrio cholerae: first reported case and review of biliary infections with Vibrio cholerae.
abstract: The first case of septicemic acute acalculous cholecystitis caused by non-O1 Vibrio cholerae is described in a healthy traveler, and biliary tract infections from V. cholerae are reviewed. Immediately after a vacation in Cancun, Mexico, a 55-year-old man developed acute cholecystitis. Blood and bile cultures grew non-O1 V. cholerae. At surgery, the gallbladder was acalculous, inflamed, distended, and nearly ruptured. Pathogenetic factors may have included diarrhea prophylaxis with bismuth subsalicylate, distension of the gallbladder from illness-induced fasting, and bacterial toxins in the gallbladder. The patient received i.v. cephapirin, followed by oral cephradine for a total of 10 days, and he made a quick and complete recovery. V. cholerae should be considered in the differential diagnosis of persons from endemic areas who present with cholecystitis or acute jaundice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Meridia Huron Hospital, Cleveland, OH 44112, USA.
authors.forename: B C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: West
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Silberman
authors.forename: W N
authors.initials: WN
authors.lastname: Otterson
mesh_terms: D016470:Bacteremia / Q000382:microbiology*; D001660:Biliary Tract Diseases / Q000382:microbiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D002771:Cholera / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D004653:Empyema / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014734:Vibrio cholerae / Q000302:isolation & purification*