Cavitary pneumonia due to Rhodococcus equi in a heart transplant recipient.
Rhodococcus equi is an uncommon human pathogen that usually affects immunocompromised patients. We present a case of a 68-year-old male heart transplant recipient, who developed rhodococcal pneumonia with secondary bacteremia 10 months post-transplant. The patient was a retired carpenter who was involved in breeding of horses. He responded completely to the treatment with vancomycin and imipenem/cilastin, followed by oral ciprofloxacin and minocycline for total treatment duration of 5 months. This case highlights the association between an animal exposure and infection with a unique opportunistic pathogen.
Kwak
E J
EJ
Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA.
Strollo
D C
DC
Kulich
S M
SM
Kusne
S
S
D000193:Actinomycetales Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D000368:Aged; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D016027:Heart Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D016929:Rhodococcus equi / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed