Case report: Fulminant pneumococcal sepsis in an unvaccinated asplenic patient in Italy

M Chironna; A Sallustio; A De Robertis; M Quarto; C Germinario

doi:10.2807/ese.15.23.19585-en

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Case report: Fulminant pneumococcal sepsis in an unvaccinated asplenic patient in Italy
M Chironna^1,2 , A Sallustio¹ , A De Robertis¹ , M Quarto^1,2 , C Germinario^1,2
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Affiliations: ¹ Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Hygiene Section, University of Bari, Italy ² Puglia Regional Epidemiological Observatory, Bari, Italy

Correspondence:
M Chironna
m.chironna igiene.uniba.it
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Citation style for this article: Chironna M, Sallustio A, De Robertis A, Quarto M, Germinario C. Case report: Fulminant pneumococcal sepsis in an unvaccinated asplenic patient in Italy. Euro Surveill. 2010;15(23):pii=19585. https://doi.org/10.2807/ese.15.23.19585-en Received: 26 Apr 2010

Abstract

We report a fatal case of overwhelming pneumococcal infection in an asplenic young adult not vaccinated against Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae). Post-mortem microbiological investigations revealed the presence of S. pneumoniae in blood samples and lungs. Serotyping by molecular methods identified the presence of a 6C serotype not comprised in the current 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine, highlighting that a risk of fatal infections may persist even in vaccinated splenectomised individuals.