Corynebacterium JK: a new pathogen in ventriculostomy infections

In the past decade, Corynebacterium JK has emerged as a pathogen in several distinct clinical settings, including sepsis in immunocompromised patients and prosthetic valve endocarditis. It is also recognized as a nosocomial pathogen in infections of prosthetic devices. We present a case of a patient with carcinomatous meningitis who developed a Corynebacterium JK infection of an internal ventriculostomy which was used for intraventricular chemotherapy. Treatment with systemic and intraventriculostomy vancomycin for three weeks resulted in bacteriologic resolution of the infection. Removal of the prosthetic device was not essential for cure in this patient. The clinical spectrum of infection with this organism and aspects of therapy are reviewed. As a greater awareness of the pathogenic nature of this organism develops, it is likely to be implicated as a causative agent in a variety of infections.