| We describe aortic valve endocarditis caused by bartonella quintana in a 31-year-old man. The diagnosis was made on the basis of polymerase chain reaction amplification of the B quintana citrate synthase gene from cardiac valve tissue, the compatibility of histochemical stains of cardiac valve tissue, and serologic studies. ( info) |
| Bacillary angiomatosis and bacillary peliosis are opportunistic infections caused by bartonella henselae and bartonella quintana, which occur in patients with late-stage infection. We report a case of bacillary angiomatosis in an hiv-infected patient with skin, bone, and probably liver involvement, The identification of the agent (B quintana ) was done by polymerase chain reaction in the skin specimen. The patient had complete regression of all lesions after a 6-month regimen of oral erythromycin. ( info) |
| Bartonella spp. were recently recognized as causative agents of culture-negative endocarditis. Molecular techniques, such as broad-range PCR, are now available to detect fastidious or slow-growing microorganisms, or those which cannot be cultured. Such microorganisms may be responsible for culture-negative endocarditis. alcoholism and homelessness are known risk factors for bartonella quintana endocarditis, even in patients without previous valvular disease. We report a case of B. quintana endocarditis diagnosed by PCR amplification on the excised heart valve, in a young non-alcoholic and immunocompetent patient with few clinical signs of infection who did not fulfill the Duke criteria. ( info) |
| We describe the first case of bartonella quintana endocarditis affecting a prosthetic valve in a person with no known risk factors for this infection. Bartonella should be considered as a cause of endocarditis in any clinical setting. ( info) |
| bartonella quintana may cause trench fever, endocarditis, bacillary angiomatosis, and chronic bacteremia, and a reemergence among homeless populations in cities has been noted. pericarditis from rickettsia conorii and coxiella burnetii infection has been described, but there have been no reports of pericarditis due to Bartonella spp. We report a case of pericardial effusion due to bartonella quintana in a homeless man, diagnosed on the basis of PCR detection of bartonella quintana in a pericardial biopsy sample and a fourfold rise in antibody titers. The patient recovered within 2 weeks with antibiotics active against bartonellae. ( info) |
| The case of a 44 year old woman with infective endocarditis due to bartonella quintana, an organism long recognised to cause a condition known as trench fever, is reported. This case illustrates the lengthy differential diagnosis of "culture negative" endocarditis. In addition the presence of serological cross reactivity of Bartonella spp and chlamydia spp demonstrates the potential for misdiagnosis in these circumstances. ( info) |
7/15. Detection of bartonella quintana by direct immunofluorescence examination of blood smears of a patient with acute trench fever. We report a case of bartonella quintana acute symptomatic infection in a homeless man, presenting as a typical trench fever. B. quintana has been retrieved in erythrocytes in large clusters and in erythroblasts. Direct immunofluorescence of blood smears allows a rapid diagnosis. ( info) |
8/15. Autochthonous epidemic typhus associated with bartonella quintana bacteremia in a homeless person. trench fever, a louse-borne disease caused by bartonella quintana, is reemerging in homeless persons. Epidemic typhus is another life-threatening louse-borne disease caused by rickettsia prowazekii and known to occur in conditions of war, famine, refugee camps, cold weather, poverty, or lapses in public health. We report the first case of seroconversion to R. prowazekii in a homeless person of Marseilles, france. This was associated with B. quintana bacteremia. Although no outbreaks of typhus have been notified yet in the homeless population, this disease is likely to reemerge in such situation. ( info) |
| Both bartonella quintana and coxiella burnetii are known to cause of blood culture negative endocarditis. In such case, the diagnosis is usually established by serology. A case of bartonella quintana endocarditis is described where the serology was falsely positive for coxiella burnetii. This case demonstrates the difficulty in distinguishing these two etiologic agents by routine serologic testing. ( info) |
| We report an observational case of bartonella quintana-associated neuroretinitis. The patient had a positive IgM IFA titer for bartonella quintana early in the disease. After treatment, the neuroretinitis and IgM resolved. Given the patient's history, symptoms, response to treatment, and IgM course, we believe his neuroretinitis was secondary to bartonella quintana. ( info) |