Application of a sonication fluid vial culture method to diagnosis of prosthetic knee joint infection caused by Granulicatella adiacens

Abstract

Prosthetic joint infection is a rare but severe complication of arthroplasties, quite challenging to diagnose, especially when the pathogenic microorganisms are difficult to isolate. Granulicatella, a nutritionally deficient microorganism, is a normal component of the oral flora which under specific circumstances may be pathogenic. We report a prosthetic knee joint infection by Granulicatella adiacens, 8 years after total arthroplasty, on 76-a yearold woman. Laboratory diagnosis was achieved via a novel combined technique, using the pioneering sonication method on the implant and inoculation of the sonication fluid in a pediatric blood culture bottle (sonication fluid vial culture). This technique requires further investigation since its promising results appear to open a new direction in diagnosis of prosthetic joint infections