Helicobacter cinaedi Infections in Emergency Departments: A Descriptive Study

Helicobacter cinaedi, a Gram-negative spiral bacterium, is a rare cause of bacteremia in humans. Unfortunately, little is known about H. cinaedi infections in emergency departments (EDs). We aimed to describe the clinical features of H. cinaedi infections in the ED.

We conducted a descriptive study at the ED of Kobe City General Hospital (KCGH) in Japan between November 2011 and December 2020. We included all ED patients with H. cinaedi infections. We retrospectively obtained the patient data from electronic medical records and described the patient characteristics, clinical course, and management of H. cinaedi infections.

A total of 22 patients in the ED were diagnosed with H. cinaedi infections, and all of them were detected through blood cultures. The chief complaints were vague: fever (18/22, 81.8%), chills (10/22, 45.5%), and localized pain or tenderness (8/22, 36.4%). Patients with complicated cases were also reported in the ED; three patients had vertebral osteomyelitis, two had infected aortic aneurysms, and another two had infected cysts (renal cyst and pancreatic cyst with concomitant empyema). Tetracycline (minocycline) was primarily prescribed and administered intravenously in five of 15 (33.3%) and orally in nine of 20 (45.0%) patients. Only one (4.5%) patient required surgical interventions. None of the patients died in the hospital.

We reported the clinical features of H. cinaedi infections in the ED. Although some patients developed complicated infections, the prognosis was not poor under appropriate treatment, and most of them were successfully treated with antibiotics, primarily tetracycline.