Streptococcus bovis Meningitis in a Neonate

Abstract

\s=b\Neonatal infections have been caused by Streptococcus bovis, a nonenterococcal group D Streptococcus. A recent case of neonatal meningitis caused by this organism prompted a literature review regarding appropriate antibiotic therapy. Although most reports suggested penicillin therapy alone for S bovis meningitis, isolates of this organism that were as resistant to the lethal effect of penicillin as the enterococcus have been recovered. Therefor, it was recommended that until the results of minimal inhibitory concentration and minimal bactericidal concentration tests are known both an aminoglycoside and a penicillin be used simultaneously. Proved susceptibility to the penicillin would justify discontinuation of the aminoglycoside therapy. Physicians caring for neonates with S bovis should be aware that some strains may be resistant to the lethal effect of penicillin.

Streptococcus gallolyticus subsp. pasteurianus meningitis in an infant

“…In cases of early onset neonatal S. bovis invasive infection, it is thought that organisms are acquired from the mother during passage through the delivery canal. Fikar and Levy reported that in a neonate with S. bovis meningitis, the same organism grew from rectal and vaginal cultures obtained from the patient's mother . In contrast, the mechanism of S. bovis meningitis among infants is not completely understood.…”

Bacterial Sepsis and Meningitis

“…Streptococcus bovis is capable of causing neonatal sepsis and meningitis that is clinically similar to sepsis caused by GBS [71][72][73]. There are several classification schemata for these streptococci, and they may bear different designations in the literature.…”

“…Most cases of enterococcal sepsis in the neonate are caused by E. faecalis, with a smaller number caused by E. faecium [71,72,[81][82][83][84]. In 4 years beginning in 1974, 30 neonates with enterococcal sepsis occurred among 30,059 deliveries at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas [81].…”

Streptococcus bovis Infection in Young Infants

“…[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] These patients had meningitis with concurrent bacteremia (n ϭ 9), bacteremia alone (n ϭ 9), meningitis alone (n ϭ 4) and pneumonia with overwhelming sepsis (n ϭ 1). The median age was 3 days (interquartile range, 1-28 days).…”