title: Case report: Rhodococcus erythropolis osteomyelitis in the toe.
abstract: The Rhodococcus species rarely cause musculoskeletal infections, with only two cases reported in the literature. We report the case of a 53-year-old woman who had an infection develop after first metatarsophalangeal joint fusion. A year after surgery, she continued to have pain and swelling with nonunion. She underwent revision of the arthrodesis and tissue samples from surgery revealed Rhodococcus erythropolis. The patient's symptoms improved with oral antibiotics. One year after the revision surgery, the fusion had united. We believe this is the first report of a case of a musculoskeletal infection caused by Rhodococcus erythropolis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Trauma & Orthopaedics, Harrogate District Hospital, Lancaster Park Road, Harrogate, HG2 7SX, UK. mayankroy@hotmail.com
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sidhom
authors.forename: K G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Kerr
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Conroy
mesh_terms: D000193:Actinomycetales Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001174:Arthrodesis / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D020859:Hallux Rigidus; D006801:Humans; D008683:Metatarsophalangeal Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010019:Osteomyelitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000628:therapy; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy; D011859:Radiography; D035583:Rare Diseases; D012086:Reoperation; D012240:Rhodococcus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014034:Toes; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents