title: Abdominal abscess and Hafnia alvei septicemia occurring during the aplastic phase after autologous stem-cell transplantation in a patient with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
abstract: Hafnia alvei is a motile gram-negative bacterium that is rarely isolated from human specimens, but that sometimes can be found as part of the gastrointestinal flora. Here we report a rare case of Hafnia alvei septicemia with an abdominal abscess in a 60-year-old woman with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma involving the spleen, liver, and then lymph nodes. She initially received a splenectomy, and, over a 2-year period, four courses of chemotherapy. After achieving complete remission status, she underwent autologous peripheral blood stem-cell transplantation (PBSCT). During the aplastic phase following transplantation, the patient developed fever, diarrhea, and abdominal pain, with blood cultures positive for Hafnia alvei and an abscess in the splenic recess. Considering the high surgical risk, the infection was treated, successfully, with antibiotics (imipenem/cilastatin), without surgery or computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous drainage. Infections due to Hafnia alvei are rare, and this is the first reported case of Hafnia alvei septicemia in an adult hematologic patient undergoing a stem-cell transplantation procedure.
authors.affiliation: Division of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Department of Medical and Morphological Researches, University Hospital, Udine, Italy. candoni.a@tiscali.it
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Candoni
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Trevisan
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Filì
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tiribelli
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fanin
mesh_terms: D018784:Abdominal Abscess / Q000382:microbiology*; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000382:microbiology*; D004756:Enterobacteriaceae Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D020611:Hafnia alvei / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000628:therapy*; D016403:Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous / Q000009:adverse effects