Involvement of Campylobacter jejuni in septic arthritis: a case report

Abstract

Introduction: Campylobacter jejuni is the most common cause of human bacterial enteritis in developed countries and is a rare cause of extra-intestinal infections. Case presentation: In this paper, we report a case of septic arthritis related to C. jejuni infection in an immunocompetent 53-year-old man with prosthetic devices who presented to us with enteritis. Following treatment with ciprofloxacin, loperamide hydrochloride and acetaminophen, he developed articular pain with painful swelling and redness in the region of the outer side of the left thigh. A diagnosis of a monoarticular non-migratory manifestation was postulated and vancomycin was started but was stopped 1 day later due to the development of skin erythema, and levofloxacin, teicoplanin and rifampicin treatment was started. An X-ray of the hip excluded dislocation of the prosthesis, while ultrasound showed an abscess in the soft tissue, confirmed by a triphasic bone scan. Aspiration of the joint fluid revealed the presence of moving, curved, Gram-negative bacilli 72 h after incubation, while growth on agar plates and tryptose broth remained negative after 5 days. Reactions for Campylobacter diagnosis were positive, and the micro-organism was identified as C. jejuni. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests revealed a sensitivity for ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, imipenem, tetracycline, erythromycin and gentamicin. Antimicrobial treatment was continued for a further 10 days with complete resolution of symptoms. Conclusion: Clinicians should consider Campylobacter in infections without a history of a travel in the tropics. Antibiotic treatment must be carefully evaluated to take into account the local resistance to avoid clinical failure.

Characterization of genes differentially regulated after bile acid exposure in Campylobacter jejuni

“…Reactive arthritis is characterized by painful joints as a result from immune associated inflammation after C. jejuni infection (Colosimo et al 2015). Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by gut inflammation that is also triggered by previous infection of C. jejuni or other bacteria species and viruses (Kalischuk and Buret 2010).…”