Meningitis caused by Enterococcus gallinarum after lumbar drainage of cerebrospinal fluid

Enterococcus gallinarum meningitis in an immunocompetent host: a case report

“…In a review of the literature, only four cases of meningitis by E. gallinarum were found as shown in Table 1. In all cases, a neurological procedure was performed prior to diagnosis (three with ventriculoperitoneal shunt and one with a lumbar drain) 4,8,9,10 . We describe here a case of E. gallinarum meningitis in a 53-year-old man, with a long history of alcohol abuse.…”

“…Infection by E. gallinarum rarely occurs and has been implicated in a few invasive infections in humans, especially in immunocompromised or chronically ill patients 2,3,5 . There are only four cases of CNS involvement reported in literature due to this unusual germ, all reporting on patients with some degree of immunosuppression who had been previously submitted to a neurological procedure 4,8,9,10 . In this paper we describe one case of meningitis caused by E. gallinarum in an immunocompetent host.…”

“…Enterococci are gram-positive, facultative anaerobic cocci that are ovoid in shape and are difficult to distinguish from streptococci on Gram stain 6,8 . They are usually associated with urinary tract and cardiovascular infections, while enterococcal involvement in central nervous system (CNS) rarely occurs in immunocompetent adults 5,9,10 .…”

“…They are usually associated with urinary tract and cardiovascular infections, while enterococcal involvement in central nervous system (CNS) rarely occurs in immunocompetent adults 5,9,10 . E. faecalis and E. faecium are the two most commonly encountered enterococcal species, together accounting for 90% of isolates 6,8 . Other species, including E. gallinarum are uncommonly encountered in human clinical specimens and are primarily found in the gastrointestinal tracts in poultry 3,8 .…”

“…E. faecalis and E. faecium are the two most commonly encountered enterococcal species, together accounting for 90% of isolates 6,8 . Other species, including E. gallinarum are uncommonly encountered in human clinical specimens and are primarily found in the gastrointestinal tracts in poultry 3,8 . Infection by E. gallinarum rarely occurs and has been implicated in a few invasive infections in humans, especially in immunocompromised or chronically ill patients 2,3,5 .…”