Fulminant leukemoid reaction due to postpartum Clostridium sordellii infection

Clostridium sordellii infection in medical abortion.

A newly described, rare, lethal entity that affects previously healthy young people and has no known prevention or treatment constitutes a true public health nightmare. It also excites public attention and demands for action. The review of Clostridium sordellii infections by Aldape et al. [1] in this issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases tells the beginning of an infectious disease story to whi...

Neutropenic enterocolitis due to Clostridium septicum infection.

Three cases of neutropenic enterocolitis are described. This unusual condition occurs almost exclusively in neutropenic patients and has a fulminating course which is almost invariably fatal without surgical intervention. The lesion is centered on the caecum and hitherto its pathogenesis has been unclear, partly because most studies have been performed on material obtained at necropsy. In these...

Fulminant hepatic failure due to metastatic choroidal melanoma

Fulminant pancytopenia due to cytomegalovirus infection in an immunocompetent adult.

A case of severe and irreversible pancytopenia secondary to acute primary cytomegalovirus infection in an immunocompetent woman is described. The patient presented with thrombocytopenia, lymphopenia, anemia, and abnormal liver function tests. Treatment with corticosteroids and intravenous immunoglobulin was ineffective in reconstituting hemopoiesis. The patient developed severe sepsis and event...

Neutralization of Clostridium difficile toxin by Clostridium sordellii antitoxins.

Neutralization of Clostridium difficile toxin by Clostridium sordellii antitoxin was studied by cytotoxicity assay in tissue culture. The sources of toxin were stools from two patients with pseudomembranous colitis and a culture filtrate of C. difficile isolated from one of the patients. C. sordellii antitoxin was available either in monovalent form or as gas gangrene polyvalent antitoxin. The ...