Propionibacterium acnes causes postoperative brain abscesses unassociated with foreign bodies: case reports

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C S Berenson1, F J Bia

  • 1Department of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.

Neurosurgery
|July 1, 1989
PubMed

Insights

Propionibacterium acnes can cause brain abscesses after surgery, even without foreign bodies. Standard treatments like metronidazole are ineffective against this specific anaerobic diphtheroid infection.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Microbiology

Background:

  • Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) is an anaerobic diphtheroid.
  • Intracranial surgery poses risks for central nervous system infections.
  • P. acnes infections are often linked to foreign bodies like shunts.

Observation:

  • P. acnes was isolated from brain abscesses in two patients post-intracranial surgery.
  • These infections occurred in the absence of typical foreign body associations.
  • The cases highlight P. acnes pathogenicity in the central nervous system.

Findings:

  • P. acnes can cause brain abscesses independently of foreign bodies.
  • Central nervous system P. acnes infections can progress insidiously.
  • Metronidazole, a common anaerobic treatment, is ineffective against P. acnes.

Implications:

  • Demonstrates P. acnes as a pathogen in post-neurosurgical brain abscesses.
  • Challenges standard treatment protocols for anaerobic brain infections.
  • Necessitates development of targeted antimicrobial strategies for P. acnes CNS infections.

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