Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health

Infective endocarditis caused by anaerobes may be underrecognized. Here, we report a case of polymicrobial anaerobic infective endocarditis secondary to poor oral health. A 79-year-old man presented with fever, trismus, and a painful swollen jaw. Evaluation revealed pulmonary septic embolism, osteom...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Taro Sawabe, Shunsuke Kosugi, Takashi Matono
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American College of Physicians 2025-05-01
Series:Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases
Online Access:https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2024.0933
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849732653557743616
author Taro Sawabe
Shunsuke Kosugi
Takashi Matono
author_facet Taro Sawabe
Shunsuke Kosugi
Takashi Matono
author_sort Taro Sawabe
collection DOAJ
description Infective endocarditis caused by anaerobes may be underrecognized. Here, we report a case of polymicrobial anaerobic infective endocarditis secondary to poor oral health. A 79-year-old man presented with fever, trismus, and a painful swollen jaw. Evaluation revealed pulmonary septic embolism, osteomyelitis, and vegetation on the mitral valve. Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua were identified in blood cultures. He was diagnosed with infective endocarditis and was successfully treated with antimicrobials. This highlights the importance of promptly identifying systemic infections even in apparent odontogenic infections. Clinicians should be aware of severe infections caused by oral anaerobes and the importance of maintaining oral health.
format Article
id doaj-art-e6bb0377eb924b62bcee36e26fcfdac6
institution DOAJ
issn 2767-7664
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher American College of Physicians
record_format Article
series Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases
spelling doaj-art-e6bb0377eb924b62bcee36e26fcfdac62025-08-20T03:08:17ZengAmerican College of PhysiciansAnnals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases2767-76642025-05-014510.7326/aimcc.2024.0933Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral HealthTaro Sawabe0Shunsuke Kosugi1Takashi Matono21Department of General Internal Medicine, Aso Iizuka Hospital, Iizuka, Japan1Department of General Internal Medicine, Aso Iizuka Hospital, Iizuka, Japan2Department of Infectious Diseases, Aso Iizuka Hospital, Iizuka, JapanInfective endocarditis caused by anaerobes may be underrecognized. Here, we report a case of polymicrobial anaerobic infective endocarditis secondary to poor oral health. A 79-year-old man presented with fever, trismus, and a painful swollen jaw. Evaluation revealed pulmonary septic embolism, osteomyelitis, and vegetation on the mitral valve. Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua were identified in blood cultures. He was diagnosed with infective endocarditis and was successfully treated with antimicrobials. This highlights the importance of promptly identifying systemic infections even in apparent odontogenic infections. Clinicians should be aware of severe infections caused by oral anaerobes and the importance of maintaining oral health.https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2024.0933
spellingShingle Taro Sawabe
Shunsuke Kosugi
Takashi Matono
Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases
title Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
title_full Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
title_fullStr Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
title_full_unstemmed Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
title_short Infective Endocarditis Caused by Fusobacterium nucleatum and Slackia exigua Secondary to Poor Oral Health
title_sort infective endocarditis caused by fusobacterium nucleatum and slackia exigua secondary to poor oral health
url https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2024.0933
work_keys_str_mv AT tarosawabe infectiveendocarditiscausedbyfusobacteriumnucleatumandslackiaexiguasecondarytopoororalhealth
AT shunsukekosugi infectiveendocarditiscausedbyfusobacteriumnucleatumandslackiaexiguasecondarytopoororalhealth
AT takashimatono infectiveendocarditiscausedbyfusobacteriumnucleatumandslackiaexiguasecondarytopoororalhealth