Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2020 Jul 31;20(1):559.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-020-05286-y.

Listeria spondylodiscitis: an uncommon etiology of a common condition; a case report

Rand Al Ohaly  1 , Nischal Ranganath  2 , Medina G Saffie  3 , Anjali Shroff  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Listeria spondylodiscitis: an uncommon etiology of a common condition; a case report

Rand Al Ohaly et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: Listeriosis is a severe food-borne infection caused by the Gram-positive rod, Listeria monocytogenes. Despite the low incidence (3-8 cases per million), Listeriosis has a case fatality rate of 20-30% as it occurs predominantly in immunocompromised individuals at extremes of age, diabetics and pregnant women. Listeriosis classically presents as a febrile gastroenteritis, isolated bacteremia, meningitis, or maternal-fetal infections. Focal bone and joint infection are rare and primarily involve orthopedic implant devices. Here, we present the first case of Listeria-associated spondylodiscitis.

Case presentation: A 79-year-old male presents with acute-on-chronic back pain in the absence of risk factors or exposures, aside from age. On radiological imaging, spondylodiscitis of L3-L4 was diagnosed. Subsequently, a CT-guided biopsy was performed to aid in confirming microbiological aetiology. Listeria monocytogenes was grown in culture and patient received appropriate antibacterial therapy.

Conclusion: The case highlights the utility of image-guided tissue sampling in aiding diagnosis and management in patients with vertebral osteomyelitis. It also encourages consideration of uncommon organisms such as Listeria as an etiology of vertebral osteomyelitis, even in the absence of prosthetic implants.

Keywords: Bone & joint infection; Case report; Listeria; Listeriosis; Spondylodiscitis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Sagittal T2 Fat Sat: high signal intensity within the L3-L4 disc space involving the inferior endplate of L3 and superior end plate of L4 with end plate irregularity
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Axial T1 post-gadolinium: (no pre-GAD) images. Small amount of enhancing paravertebral soft tissue. No evidence to suggest paravertebral or epidural abscess formation
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Allerberger F, Wagner M. Listeriosis: a resurgent foodborne infection. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2010;16:16–23. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2009.03109.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. CDC . National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases. National Enteric Disease Surveillance:The Listeria Initiative. 2016. pp. 1–2.
    1. Swaminathan B, Gerner-Smidt P. The epidemiology of human listeriosis. Microbes Infect. 2007;9:1236–1243. doi: 10.1016/j.micinf.2007.05.011. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hasan T, Chik W, Chen S, Kok J. Successful treatment of Listeria monocytogenes prosthetic valve endocarditis using rifampicin and benzylpenicillin in combination with valve replacement. JMM Case Rep. 2017;4:e005085. doi: 10.1099/jmmcr.0.005085. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. García-Granja PE, et al. Infective endocarditis due to Listeria Monocytogenes: a report of 4 patients. Rev Esp Cardiol (Engl Ed) 2016;69:700–702. doi: 10.1016/j.recesp.2016.03.010. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

Substances