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Review
. 2022 Nov;28(11):2147-2154.
doi: 10.3201/eid2811.220273.

Severe Pneumonia Caused by Corynebacterium striatum in Adults, Seoul, South Korea, 2014-2019

Yun Woo Lee, Jin Won Huh, Sang-Bum Hong, Jiwon Jung, Min Jae Kim, Yong Pil Chong, Sung-Han Kim, Heungsup Sung, Kyung-Hyun Do, Sang-Oh Lee, Chae-Man Lim, Yang Soo Kim, Younsuck Koh, Sang-Ho Choi
Review

Severe Pneumonia Caused by Corynebacterium striatum in Adults, Seoul, South Korea, 2014-2019

Yun Woo Lee et al. Emerg Infect Dis. 2022 Nov.

Abstract

We investigated the proportion and characteristics of severe Corynebacterium striatum pneumonia in South Korea during 2014-2019. As part of an ongoing observational study of severe pneumonia among adult patients, we identified 27 severe C. striatum pneumonia cases. Most (70.4%) cases were hospital-acquired, and 51.9% of patients were immunocompromised. C. striatum cases among patients with severe hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) increased from 1.0% (2/200) during 2014-2015 to 5.4% (10/185) during 2018-2019, but methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections among severe HAP cases decreased from 12.0% to 2.7% during the same timeframe. During 2018-2019, C. striatum was responsible for 13.3% of severe HAP cases from which bacterial pathogens were identified. The 90-day mortality rates were similarly high in the C. striatum and MRSA groups. C. striatum was a major cause of severe HAP and had high mortality rates. This pathogen is emerging as a possible cause for severe pneumonia, especially among immunocompromised patients.

Keywords: Corynebacterium striatum; South Korea; bacteria; incidence; intensive care units; mortality; pneumonia; respiratory infections.

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