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Case Reports
. 2023 Sep 1;23(1):533.
doi: 10.1186/s12877-023-04224-2.

Elderly and their companion animals, cause for pleasure or for harm, a case report of a non-bite Pasteurella multocida bacteremia in an 85-year-old woman with a fatal outcome

Evien Ali  1   2 , Niek Tytgat  3 , Lieven Vergote  4 , Katleen Devue  5 , Bart Nonneman  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Elderly and their companion animals, cause for pleasure or for harm, a case report of a non-bite Pasteurella multocida bacteremia in an 85-year-old woman with a fatal outcome

Evien Ali et al. BMC Geriatr. .

Abstract

We present a case of an elderly woman suffering from Pasteurella multocida (P. multocida) bacteremia, without obvious bite marks, but owning a pet dog. Although the patient was not immunocompromised, and prompt treatment with intravenous antibiotics was initiated, she developed severe septic shock with multiple organ failure and died. In healthy individuals, an infection caused by these bacteria is easy to treat and often harmless, whereas in elderly serious complications can occur. We believe this report of a fatal outcome of a P. multocida bacteremia in a non-immunocompromised, but elderly patient is important, given the growing cohort of elderly pet-owners seeking medical care. A greater awareness of this zoonosis and its potentially fatal outcome is warranted.

Keywords: Case report; Non-bite Pasteurella multocida bacteremia; Pasteurella multocida; Zoonosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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