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Mycotic Aneurisma of the Abdominal Aorta Caused by Campylobacter fetus
Resumen La infección es una complicación infrecuente de los aneurismas de la aorta abdominal. Campylobacter fetus tiene un especial tropismo por el endotelio vascular y ha sido reportado como causa de infección de aneurismas aórticos. Este tipo de infección es de alta mortalidad por lo que el reconocimiento temprano con el inicio precoz de terapia antibacteriana efectiva es clave. Además del tratamiento médico, puede requerirse cirugía, la que tiene una alta letalidad en pacientes inestables y con comorbilidades. Comunicamos el caso clínico de un adulto mayor con un aneurisma de aorta abdominal infectado por C. fetus. Dado su compromiso del estado general y antecedentes cardiovasculares se decidió tratamiento médico con imipenem, con una buena respuesta clínica y microbiológica, sin recurrencia de los síntomas. También se presenta una revisión de los casos publicados.
Mycotic aneurysm caused by Campylobacter is rare. The patient was a 65-year-old man and his chief complaint was low back pain. He had no past history of diabetes, steroid use nor malignant disease. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography demonstrated multiple saccular aneurysms of the abdominal aorta and right common iliac artery. Preoperative blood culture revealed Campylobacter. Imipenem was started and elective surgery was performed. Using an ePTFE graft, Y grafting and omental transfer was performed. His postoperative course was uneventful.
The purpose of this study was to analyze the surgical procedures, culture results, and outcomes, and to survey the prevalence of the infectious organisms over a 30-year period in patients with a primary infected abdominal aortic aneurysm (PIAAA).
A total of 11 patients (1.8%) with PIAAA were surgically treated between 1982 and June 2009. All patients had back pain, leukocytosis, and elevated C-reactive protein level. All of the patients underwent either urgent or emergency operations.
Cultures of aortic wall specimens and blood were positive in 10 patients and included Salmonella in 2, Streptococcus in 2, Campylobacter fetus in 2, and Listeria, Haemophilus influenzae, Serratia marcescens, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, and an unknown organism in 1 patient each. The 10 patients underwent in situ prosthetic grafting with excision of the infected tissue and lavage using 10 l saline solution; omentum plasty was required in four patients. An axillofemoral bypass was performed in one patient with pus surrounding the AAA. All 10 patients with in situ replacement survived and were administered intravenous antibiotic therapy for 1 month postoperatively. All of these patients left the hospital without any further complications. However, one patient who underwent an axillofemoral bypass died of overwhelming sepsis.
In situ replacement with excision of infected tissue, lavage using 10 l saline solution, and omentum plasty for PIAAA successfully resolved the condition. High local concentrations of rifampin-soaked grafts or superficial femoral vein may also be an alternative for an in situ replacement conduit.
There is no standard procedure for revascularization after infected infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm resection. This study examines the outcomes of two contemporary methods.
We retrospectively reviewed medical records for patients who underwent repair of infected infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysms from January 1998 to December 2007 at a single institution. Patients with infected prosthetic aortic grafts were excluded.
Twenty-eight patients (22 men; mean age, 65 ± 12) had in situ graft (group I, n = 13) or extra-anatomic bypass (group II, n = 15), with a mean follow-up of 22 months. Mean hospital lengths of stay were 36 ± 16 days for group I and 46 ± 17 days for group II. Overall perioperative mortality was 5 of 28 (18%), comprising 1 of 13 in group I (8%) and 4 of 15 in group II (27%; P = .333). No early or late vascular-related complications occurred in group I. In group II, three patients had early vascular-related complications, including, graft infection, graft occlusion and ischemia colitis, and five patients had late vascular-related complications, including graft infection and graft occlusion. One patient ultimately lost a limb. Group I had a 0% late complication rate vs 33% in group II (P = .044). For cumulative survival rates, Kaplan-Meier analysis and log-rank testing revealed no significant differences between groups I and II.
In situ graft revascularization is viable in afebrile patients or patients who have good response to preoperative antibiotic therapy. Extra-anatomic bypass grafting for infected infrarenal abdominal aneurysm resection has a similar long-term survival rate and should be considered in patients who are unsuitable for in situ graft revascularization; however, the postoperative complication rate is higher. Further prospective study with large patient populations is needed to determine the selection criteria for using in situ revascularization as alternative methods for treatment of infected abdominal aneurysms.
To assess causative pathogens and surgical outcomes in patients with primary infected aorto-iliac aneurysms at our institution.
Retrospective study of patients treated at a university hospital between 1992 and 2009.
We identified 26 patients (median age, 63 years) with primary infected aneurysms on the aorta (descending thoracic, n = 2; thoraco-abdominal, n = 3; suprarenal, n = 2; infrarenal, n = 15) or iliac arteries (n = 4). Among them, 22 were symptomatic, including 13 with ruptured aneurysms. The causative organisms, identified in 25/26 patients, were Campylobacter fetus, n = 6; Streptococcus pneumoniae, n = 4; Listeria, n = 3; Salmonella, n = 2; Mycobacterium tuberculosis, n = 2; Staphylococcus aureus, n = 1; and other, n = 7. Immune suppression was a feature in 10 (38.4%) patients. Revascularisation was performed in situ in 23 patients (10 allografts, eight grafts, three superficial femoral veins, and 2 stentgrafts) and by extra-anatomic bypass in three patients. Hospital mortality was 23% (in situ group, 17.4%; extra-anatomic group, 66.7%; χ(2)(Yates), P = 0.24). During follow-up in the 20 survivors (median, 48.5 months), there were two non-infection-related deaths (five and 24 months) and six (30%) vascular complications.
The bacteriological spectrum of primary infected aorto-iliac aneurysms was wider than previously reported. The availability of new diagnostic tests and increased prevalence of immunosuppression may explain this finding.
To review our management of mycotic aneurysms involving the abdominal aorta over the past 2 decades to assess the safety and efficacy of in-situ and extra-anatomic repair combined with antibiotic treatment.
From March 1990 to August 2008, 44 patients with a mycotic aneurysm involving the abdominal aorta were treated at our University Hospital. For all patients, we recorded the aetiology, clinical findings and anatomic location of the aneurysm, as well as bacteriology results, surgical and antibiotic therapy and morbidity and mortality.
Twenty-one (47.7%) of the mycotic aneurysms had already ruptured at the time of surgery. Free rupture was present in nine patients (20.5%). Contained rupture was observed in 12 patients (27.3%). Urgent surgery was performed in 18 cases (40.9%). Revascularisation was achieved by in-situ reconstruction in 37 patients (84.1%), while extra-anatomic reconstruction was performed in six patients (13.6%). One patient (2.3%) was treated with a combined in-situ and extra-anatomic reconstruction. In one case (2.3%), endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) was performed. In-hospital mortality was 22.7%, 50% in the extra-anatomic reconstruction group and 18.9% in the in-situ repair group. One-third (33.3%) of our patients, who presented with a ruptured mycotic aneurysm died in the peri-operative period. This mortality was 13% in the patient-group presenting with an intact aneurysm. Of the 34 surviving patients, 12 patients (27.3% of surviving patients died after discharge from our hospital. In half of these patients, an acute cardiac event was to blame. Three patients (8%) showed re-infection after in-situ reconstruction.
Management of mycotic aortic aneurysms remains a challenging problem. The results of surgery depend on many factors. In our experience, in-situ repair remains a feasible and safe treatment option for patients who are in good general condition at the time of surgery.
Few reports of aortoiliac aneurysms infected by Campylobacter fetus are available. We report five cases and review previous reports, with a view to describing the clinical pattern, treatment options, and outcome of this infection.
During a 10-year period, 21 patients were diagnosed with C fetus infection in the Department of Clinical Microbiology, five of whom had an infected arterial aneurysm. We retrospectively reviewed their medical charts. Diagnosis was made on the basis of clinical presentation, computed tomography scan, perioperative findings, and identification of C fetus in at least one blood culture or culture from an aneurysm specimen. Late outcome of surviving patients was assessed by telephone interview.
We identified four aortic aneurysms and one hypogastric aneurysm. All patients were seen in an emergency setting. Five had fever and abdominal pain, and three had contained rupture. Campylobacter fetus was found in blood cultures of four patients and in the aneurysm specimen of one patient. Three patients were treated by open repair and two by endovascular repair. One patient treated endovascularly died from septic shock due to C fetus at 2 weeks. One patient treated by open surgery underwent reoperation for persistent infection. The remaining patients were cured, but one died at 5 months of an unrelated cause. All surviving patients received long-term antibiotic therapy.
Campylobacter fetus infection of aortoiliac aneurysms is a serious condition with a high rate of rupture. However, long-term success can be obtained with prompt surgical treatment and an appropriate antibiotic regimen. The benefits of stent grafts remain debatable.
To determine the imaging characteristics of infected aortic aneurysms.
Review of records of patients with surgical and/or microbiologic proof of infected aortic aneurysm obtained over a 25-year period revealed 31 aneurysms in 29 patients. This study included 21 men and eight women (mean age, 70 years). One radiologist reviewed 28 computed tomographic (CT) studies (22 patients underwent CT once and three patients underwent CT twice), 12 arteriograms (12 patients underwent arteriography once), eight nuclear medicine studies (six patients underwent nuclear medicine imaging once and one patient underwent nuclear medicine imaging twice), and three magnetic resonance (MR) studies (three patients underwent MR imaging once). Features evaluated included aneurysm size, shape, and location; branch involvement; aortic wall calcification; gas; radiotracer uptake on nuclear medicine studies; and periaortic and associated findings. The location of infected aortic aneurysms was compared with that of arteriosclerotic aneurysms.
Aneurysms were located in the ascending aorta (n = 2, 6%), descending thoracic aorta (n = 7, 23%), thoracoabdominal aorta (n = 6, 19%), paravisceral aorta (n = 2, 6%), juxtarenal aorta (n = 3, 10%), infrarenal aorta (n = 10, 32%), and renal artery (n = 1, 3%). Two patients had two infected aortic aneurysms. CT revealed 25 saccular (93%) and two fusiform (7%) aneurysms with a mean diameter at initial discovery of 5.4 cm (range, 1-11 cm). Paraaortic soft-tissue mass, stranding, and/or fluid was present in 13 (48%) of 27 aneurysms, and early periaortic edema with rapid aneurysm progression and development was present in three (100%) patients with sequential studies. Other findings included adjacent vertebral body destruction with psoas muscle abscess (n = 1, 4%), kidney infarct (n = 1, 4%), absence of calcification in the aortic wall (n = 2, 7%), and periaortic gas (n = 2, 7%). Angiography showed 13 saccular aneurysms with lobulated contour in 10 (77%). Nuclear medicine imaging showed increased activity consistent with infection in six (86%) of seven aneurysms. MR imaging showed three saccular aneurysms. Adjacent abnormal vertebral body marrow signal intensity was seen in one (33%) of three patients.
Saccular aneurysms (especially those with lobulated contour) with rapid expansion or development and adjacent mass, stranding, and/or fluid in an unusual location are highly suspicious for an infected aneurysm.
We present a rare case of an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) infected with Campylobacter fetus. The patient presented with abdominal pain and leukocytosis, without a palpable AAA. Computed tomography (CT) of the abdomen showed a 3.1 x 3.0 cm infrarenal abdominal aneurysm with an extra-aortic fluid collection. At surgery, an in situ graft was placed. Intraoperative aortic wall cultures grew pansensitive C. fetus, and blood cultures remained negative. At 9-month follow-up, the patient was doing well without complaints. To our knowledge, this represents only the ninth reported case of an AAA with an aortic wall culture positive for C. fetus.
In this paper, we report 21 cases of Campylobacter fetus bloodstream infection observed in our institution over a 9-year period. The median age of the patients was 78 years. Most of them (62%) had a significant underlying disease, such as diabetes, immunodeficiency or cardiovascular disease. The main clinical features were fever with (62% of cases) or without (38%) extra-intestinal symptoms. These included mycotic aneurysm of the abdominal aorta (24%) and cellulitis (19%). Antibiotic treatment was mainly based on amoxicilline-clavulanate (57%) or imipenem (21%), for a median duration of 28 days. A favourable outcome was observed in 72% of cases. Death directly attributable to infection was observed for three patients, due to the rupture of an infected aneurysm or relapsing bloodstream infection with septic shock. All patients initially treated with imipenem had a favourable outcome. This report adds evidence that C. fetus bloodstream infection should be suspected in elderly patients with fever, immunodeficiency and cardiovascular damages. Imipenem seems to be the most active drug, especially in severe cases.
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739X/$ – see front matter # 2013 AEC. Publicado por Elsevier Españ a, S.L. Todos los derechos reservados. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ciresp.2013.06.005