Lumbar Spine Infection with Eikenella corrodens Presented as Abdominal Pain: A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Background: Eikenella corrodens is a part of the inherent flora on the surface of human mucosa. It usually does not cause disease unless the patient has been bitten, injured or surgically infected. Lumbar spine infection caused by Eikenella corrodens usually presents with conventional symptoms such as low back pain and fever. Herein, we report a case of lumbar intervertebral space infection with Eikenella corrodens presented as abdominal pain. Case Presentation: A 38-year-old man with no medical history of note presented with abdominal pain. Initially, local doctors suspected that the patient had abdominal disease. However, abdominal diseases were ruled out and only lumbar spine infection was confirmed. Then, the patient was misdiagnosed as lumbar tuberculosis. Finally, anaerobic culture and metagenomic next-generation sequencing confirmed the Eikenella corrodens, which was rarely involved in lumbar intervertebral space infection. The patient recovered after operation and antibiotic therapy. Conclusion: This case indicated a rare symptom of lumbar spine infection, abdominal cramping, which is caused by Eikenella corrodens. Blood culture had low sensitivity as a diagnostic method for Eikenella corrodens, but lesion sample culture or metagenomic next-generation sequencing had high sensitivity for early diagnosis.

Diagnostic Efficacy of Metagenomic Next-Generation Sequencing in Patients with Spinal Infections: A Retrospective Study

“…In recent years, with the declining cost of sequencing, mNGS has been implemented in clinical practice, offering substantial benefits to patients with suspected spinal infections. 7 Herein, a retrospective study was conducted to evaluate the accuracy and validity of mNGS in diagnosing spinal infections.…”

“…5 Given that the mNGS technique enables rapid and impartial culture-independent diagnosis, it has been adopted in clinical laboratories for pneumonia, sepsis, and spinal infection. [6][7][8] In current clinical practice, numerous case reports and retrospective studies have demonstrated the superior diagnostic efficiency of mNGS compared to traditional culture methods. [9][10][11] Moreover, the use of antibiotics significantly undermines the success of traditional cultures, whereas the mNGS technique is minimally affected.…”