Cardiobacterium Hominis Endocarditis: A Case Report

Cardiobacterium hominis, a fastidious gram-negative bacillus rarely causing endocarditis, was isolated from blood culture of a 41-year-old man with subacute bacterial endocarditis. The patient had undergone an operation of valve replacement 4 years before. Growth of the organism was only detected in 1 of 6 blood cultures after 7 days incubation. The isolate showed typical characteristics of C. hominis, i.e., tear-drop like cells and a weak positive indole reaction. The isolate was susceptible to many antimicrobial agents, but penicillin G and streptomycin therapy failed to cure the disease.