Gardnerella vaginalis causing pulmonary infection in a young adult: A novel case

Abstract

Gardnerella vaginalis is an anaerobic, gram-variable bacterium primarily found in vaginal microflora of women. Previous reports of G. vaginalis cultured in men are few and have primarily been limited to the gastrointestinal and genitourinary tract.2-4 Few reports of G. vaginalis causing severe infections have been reported in the literature, including septicemia7 and two cases of perinephric abscess.8,9 There has been one previously reported case of G. vaginalis causing pulmonary complications that occurred in a male alcohol abuser. In our case review, we aim to demonstrate an unusual source of a pulmonary infection and highlight the importance of proper microbial isolation to guide treatment. Our patient is a young male who presented following multiple gunshot wounds including one to his head causing an intracranial hemorrhage, hydrocephalus, and a dural sinus thrombosis. His hospital course was complicated by a decline in neurological status treated with a craniotomy and external drain placement and multiple pulmonary infections. During his fever work-ups, he found to have G. vaginalis on mini-bronchoalveolar lavage and was subsequently treated with metronidazole. After treating his G. vaginalis pneumonia and other infectious sources, namely Haemaphilus influenzae and coagulase-negative staphylococcus pneumonias, his fevers and leukocytosis resolved and he was successfully discharged to a rehabilitation facility for neurologic recovery. To our knowledge, this is the second reported case of G. vaginalis isolated from a pulmonary culture and the first in a previously healthy, immunocompetent young male outside of the urinary tract.