A rare bacteremia caused by Fannyhessea vaginae in a pregnant woman: case report and literature review

Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2023 Dec 8:13:1278921. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1278921. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

Bloodstream infection caused by anaerobic microorganisms continues to be associated with a high mortality risk, necessitating a rapid diagnosis and an appropriate treatment. As an anaerobic gram-positive organism associated with vaginal infections, Fannyhessea vaginae is a rare cause of invasive infections. In this case, a 32-year-old pregnant woman with bacterial vaginosis presented with bacteremia. The microbiological analysis of the blood cultures identified F. vaginae. The patient was treated empirically with 5 days of cefoperazone/sulbactam and recovered well. Here, we provide a review of the literature on F. vaginae infections, and the reported cases demonstrate the need for awareness of the different anaerobic species found in the vaginal tract and adaptation of empirical therapies, especially in pregnant women.

Keywords: Fannyhessea vaginae; anaerobic bloodstream infections; bacteremia; case report; literature review.

Publication types

  • Review
  • Case Reports
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Bacteremia* / diagnosis
  • Bacteremia* / drug therapy
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnant Women
  • Sulbactam / therapeutic use
  • Vagina / microbiology
  • Vaginosis, Bacterial* / microbiology

Substances

  • Sulbactam

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by the Science and Technology Project of the Jinan Municipal Health Commission, grant numbers 2020-4-71 and 2022-1-37.