We report the first case of thoracic empyema associated with Campylobacter curvus infection. A 65-year-old woman with a history of bronchiectasis presented with acute cough and phlegm. The patient reported dyspnoea and left chest pain accompanied by left pleural effusion, despite treatment with sitafloxacin. Curved Gram-negative rods, eventually identified as C. curvus using 16S ribosomal RNA- and atpA-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing, were cultured in anaerobic condition of pleural effusion together with Peptostreptococci. The patient recovered after thoracic drainage and treatment with ampicillin/sulbactam and clindamycin. C. curvus, an anaerobe present in human oral cavity, can be associated with extra-oral infections such as empyema.
Keywords: 16S ribosomal RNA; Campylobacter curvus; lung abscess; pleural effusion.