title: Eikenella corrodens from a brain abscess.
abstract: A 2-year-old boy with underlying congenital cyanotic heart disease presented with seizures and fever and was found to have bilateral parietal cerebral abscesses. Drainage of the pus from the abscesses was done in stages; on the day of admission, four days after admission and 3 weeks after admission. Although the pus from the first drainage did not grow any organisms, the pus from the second drainage on the fourth day of admission yielded a mixed growth of Eikenella corrodens and Streptococcus milleri. Following the second drainage of pus, the child was noted to have mild weakness (grade 3/5) and increased tone in the left upper limb. Three weeks after admission, due to recurring fever, further neurological signs and findings of an enlarging right cerebral abscess on a repeat CT scan, a third drainage was carried out. However no growth was obtained from this specimen. This patient was managed both surgically and with appropriate antibiotics. Over the next four months, serial CT scans revealed gradual resolution of the abscesses with disappearance of the surrounding oedema. The child showed gradual recovery of his left sided weakness with resolution of tone and reflexes to normal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. rina_k@um.edu.my
authors.forename: Rina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Karunakaran
authors.forename: Mary J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Marret
authors.forename: Hamimah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: Savithri D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Puthucheary
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001922:Brain Abscess / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000601:surgery; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004322:Drainage; D016124:Eikenella corrodens / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia; D008297:Male; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents