Overwhelming pneumococcal bacteremia revealed by a peripheral blood smear in a 74-year-old healthy woman.
A 76-year-old woman, who had never been seriously ill, was admitted to our hospital with fever and shaking chills. She progressively developed septic shock. We detected Streptococcus pneumoniae in a routine examination of a Giemsa-stained peripheral blood smear. Despite intensive care with antibiotic therapy, she died within several hours after admission. A peripheral blood smear occasionally shows bacteria in cases of overwhelming septicemia, thus indicating a severe impairment of splenic function. We suggest that, in cases of severe septicemia, an examination of a peripheral blood smear is therefore useful for the rapid detection of organisms in comparison to a traditional blood culture.
Nakamura
Hideta
H
Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Urasoe General Hospital, Okinawa. nrd06752@nifty.com
Saitou
Manabu
M
Kinjo
Shunichi
S
Kaneshima
Hiroshi
H
Higa
Futoshi
F
Tateyama
Masao
M
Fujita
Jiro
J
D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D009325:Nausea / Q000209:etiology; D011008:Pneumococcal Infections / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology; D012772:Shock, Septic / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014839:Vomiting / Q000209:etiology
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents