[Meningococcal sepsis and difficulties in differential diagnosis--case report]

We report a case of meningococcal sepsis in a healthy immunocompetent sixteen year old boy who had developed upper respiratory tract acute infection 10 days before the admittance. Clinical manifestations were similar to those found in allergic hemorrhagic purpura (Schonlein's form of the disease). The clinical course of these two diseases is usually different but sometimes they cannot be easily differentiated. The acute onset of polyarthritis, temperature and skin manifestations in the form of erythematous maculopapular exanthema which within several hours evolved into hemorrhagic purpura is typical for the sepsis caused by Neisseria meningitides but these characteristics might be found in allergic Henoch-Schonlein' purpura as well. In our case the accurate diagnosis was set by the identification of the group C Neisseriae meningitides from the patient's blood. The first choice was penicillin therapy.