Acute Q Fever Pneumonia.

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii which has a worldwide distribution. Pneumonia occurs in almost half of the patients who have an acute C. burnetii infection. Less than 5-6% of community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is found to be caused by this organism. Endemicity of C. burnetii infection has been recorded in various studies carried out in our country. However there is no mention about Q fever as a cause of CAP in the various studies done to identify the aetiological agent. We report a case of acute Q fever related pneumonia and this appears to be the first reported case of pneumonia due to C. burnetii infection in India.

Prosthetic aortic valve endocarditis due to Ochrobactrum anthropi.

Ochrobactrum anthropi is an emerging pathogen increasingly affecting the immunocompromised host. Only four cases of infective endocarditis have been documented in literature. Therapeutic approach is a rising challenge as it is resistant to most of the currently available beta lactam antibiotics with the exception of carbapenems. We report a case of prosthetic valve endocarditis secondary to Ochrobactrum anthropi infection; the host was temporarily immunocompromised due to disseminated herpes zoster after surgery.

Aerobic bacterial isolates from choledochal bile at a tertiary hospital.

We studied the aerobic bacterial isolates from bile and their susceptibilty pattern in patients with biliary tract disease. Samples of bile collected during endoscopic retrograde cholangio pancreatography (ERCP) and surgery, were inoculated on standard media. Bacterial identification and susceptibility were done by standard techniques. A total of 209 samples were cultured, out of which 128 samples showed growth. Total number of isolates obtained was 221. Poly-microbial infection was detected in 67 patients. Predominant aerobic bacterial isolates obtained were Escherichia coli 30% (67), Klebsiella species 23.98% (53), Enterococcus species 12.21% (27). Multi-drug resistance was noted in 57%. Higher resistance rate was noted among Gram negative bacilli for ampicillin (92.4%), cephalexin (82.46%), ciprofloxacin (68.42%), piperacillin (64.33%). Sensitivity to meropenem was 90.64% and amikacin was 76.61%. Gram positive bacteria showed high resistance to gentamicin (39.53%). Sensitivity to ampicillin was 86.05% and penicillin was 81.4%. Vancomycin and teicoplanin showed 100% sensitivity. From our study we conclude that E. coli, Klebsiella species and Enterococcus species are common pathogens infecting biliary tract. Poly-microbial infection and multi-drug resistance warrants culture and sensitivity to guide antimicrobial therapy. We recommend combination of amikacin and ampicillin for empirical therapy at our institution.