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
. 2025 Sep 25;7(3):326-330.
doi: 10.36519/idcm.2025.609. eCollection 2025 Sep.

Nocardia Ventriculitis: A Rare Case Report

Hatice Hicret Öner-Demetgül  1 , İlem Karaca  2 , Gülşen Hazırolan  3 , Gülşah Çetin  4 , Mustafa Berker  4 , Ömrüm Uzun  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Nocardia Ventriculitis: A Rare Case Report

Hatice Hicret Öner-Demetgül et al. Infect Dis Clin Microbiol. .

Abstract

Ventriculitis caused by Nocardia spp. is a rare infection of the central nervous system. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of ventriculitis caused by Nocardia otitidiscaviarum. We present a 64-year-old woman admitted with confusion and malaise. Neuroimaging revealed marked enlargement and contrast enhancement of the left choroid plexus, suggestive of ventriculitis. Culture from surgical drainage confirmed N. otitidiscaviarum. Empirical antibiotic therapy, including trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, was initiated and later adjusted based on susceptibility testing results. However, during follow-up, the patient died from septic shock due to Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteremia. Nocardia-associated ventriculitis has a high mortality rate. Early diagnosis, timely surgical intervention, and appropriate antibiotics are essential for improving clinical outcomes.

Keywords: Nocardia; Ventriculitis; choroid plexitis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. Coronal (A) and axial (B) T1-weighted MRI images demonstrate dilatation of both lateral ventricles and the presence of multiple cystic lesions with peripheral contrast enhancement.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Gram stain of the intraoperative pus culture revealed filamentous, branching Gram-positive bacilli consistent with Nocardia.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Gupta S, Grant LM, Powers HR, Kimes KE, Hamdi A, Butterfield RJ, et al. Invasive Nocardia infections across distinct geographic regions, United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 2023;29(12):2417–2425. doi: 10.3201/eid2912.230673. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Margalit I, Lebeaux D, Tishler O, Goldberg E, Bishara J, Yahav D, et al. How do I manage nocardiosis? Clin Microbiol Infect. 2021;27(4):550–558. doi: 10.1016/j.cmi.2020.12.019. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ziai WC, Lewin JJ3rd. Update in the diagnosis and management of central nervous system infections. Neurol Clin. 2008;26(2):427–468. doi: 10.1016/j.ncl.2008.03.013. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hall WA, Munakomi S. Ventriculitis. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing. [February 24, 2025]. 2025. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK544332/ - PubMed
    1. Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) Susceptibility testing of mycobacteria, <i>Nocardia</i> spp., and other aerobic actinomycetes. 3rd ed. CLSI; CLSI standard M24. Wayne (PA): 2018. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources