Ten Years of Disseminated Gonococcal Infections in North Carolina: A Review of Cases From a Large Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Background: The detection and reporting of disseminated gonococcal infection (DGI) has been increasing across the United States.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective chart review of DGI case-patients diagnosed between 2010 and 2019 at a large tertiary care hospital in North Carolina.

Results: We identified 12 DGI case-patients (7 men and 5 women, aged 20 to 44 years), of whom 5 had Neisseria gonorrheae isolated from a sterile site (confirmed), 2 had N. gonorrheae detected at a nonsterile mucosal site and had clinical manifestations consistent with DGI (probable), and 5 did not have N. gonorrheae isolated from any site, but DGI was the most likely diagnosis (suspect). Among the 12 DGI case-patients, the most common manifestation was arthritis or tenosynovitis (n = 11); 1 patient had endocarditis. Half of the patients had significant underlying comorbidities or predisposing factors, including complement deficiency. Eleven of the 12 case-patients were hospitalized, and 4 required surgical intervention.

Conclusions: This case series highlights the difficulty of making a definitive diagnosis of DGI, which could negatively affect reporting to public health authorities and hinder surveillance efforts to determine the true prevalence of DGI. A high index of suspicion is required, and a full diagnostic workup should be pursued in all cases of suspected DGI.

Figure 1.

Summary of medical records search results, with number of cases included in and excluded from the case series, and reasons for inclusion or exclusion.