Post-traumatic Curvularia sp. arthritis in an immunocompetent adult

A 44-year-old woman, victim of a road accident in Mali was diagnosed with left knee arthritis. Joint effusion aspiration and subcutaneous surgical biopsies were positive for a melanized asexual ascomycete. Using microscopy and molecular biology, the fungus was identified as Curvularia sp. In vitro antifungal susceptibility was determined by the EUCAST broth microdilution reference technique and by E-test. The patient was treated with liposomal amphotericin B before posaconazole relay. Mycological samples obtained 10 days after starting the antifungal therapy by liposomal amphotericin B were negative in culture. Curvularia spp. are environmental fungi which can under certain conditions be pathogenic for humans.

Prevalence of Deep Surgical Site Infection After Repair of Periarticular Knee Fractures: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

IMPORTANCE

Surgical management of periarticular knee fractures can be challenging, and adverse outcomes may be severe. Recent literature indicates that the rate of periarticular knee surgical site infection (SSI) may range from 2% to 88% depending on the fracture site.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the prevalence of deep SSI and the rate of septic arthritis after surgical repair of fractures around the knee.

DATA SOURCES

The electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched from their inception to July 1, 2018.

STUDY SELECTION

Eligible studies had to specifically report deep SSI rates and include fractures in the distal femur, patella, tibial plateau, or proximal tibia. Risk factors that were associated with increased the risk of deep SSI were also examined.

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS

This study followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) reporting guideline. Data were extracted by multiple investigators. Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software was used for the pooling of data, using either random-effects or fixed-effects models, with respect to the degree of statistical heterogeneity present. Data analyses were conducted in October 2019.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The primary outcome was overall prevalence of deep SSI after periarticular knee fracture repair. The secondary outcomes were the overall prevalence of septic arthritis, risk factors associated with deep SSI, and the most commonly cultured bacteria specimens found periarticular knee infections.

RESULTS

Of 6928 articles screened, 117 articles met inclusion criteria and were included in analysis. Among 11 432 patients included in analysis, 653 patients (5.7%) experienced deep SSIs, most commonly among patients with proximal tibia fractures (56 of 872 patients [6.4%]). Among studies that included information on septic arthritis, 38 of 1567 patients (2.4%) experienced septic arthritis. The 2 most commonly reported bacteria were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, found in 67 SSIs, and methicillin-susceptible S aureus, found in 53 SSIs. Sixty-two studies (53.0%) in the sample received a Coleman Methodological Score of poor (<50 points).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Deep SSIs occurred in nearly 6% of periarticular knee fracture repairs, and 2.4% of SSIs were associated with septic arthritis. Surgeons managing these injuries should be vigilant when wounds are not pristine. Efforts should be made to elevate the quality of research conducted not only in this subject but also in orthopedic surgery as a whole.

Management of a Difficult-to-Heal Chronic Wound Infected With Methycillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in a Patient With Psoriasis Following a Complex Knee Surgery

This report presents the difficulties encountered in managing a wound colonized with methycillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) following a complex knee surgery in an elderly female patient with generalized psoriasis. The patient’s chronic wound was successfully treated with nanocrystalline silver-releasing dressings (Acticoat™). The patient did not develop a deep-seated infection, nor was removal of the implant needed. However, the wound infection persisted for 6 months. At 3 years follow-up, the patient has satisfactory skin over the implant on the knee.

Phomopsis bougainvilleicola prepatellar bursitis in a renal transplant recipient

Prepatellar bursitis is typically a monomicrobial bacterial infection. A fungal cause is rarely identified. We describe a 61-year-old man who had received a renal transplant 21 months prior to presentation whose synovial fluid and surgical specimens grew Phomopsis bougainvilleicola, a pycnidial coelomycete.

Pseudomonas stutzeri knee arthritis in a child: case report and review

We report a child with Pseudomonas stutzeri-associated right knee arthritis following knife puncture wound. Only four children with P. stutzeri-associated infections have been reported in the English literature in the last 40 years of whom one suffered from calcaneal osteomyelitis caused by this pathogen. In both cases, the suggested mechanism of the infection was local rather than bacterium invasion.

Leprosy acquired by inoculation from a knee injury

This case study reports on the development of clinical leprosy in a young Caucasian female from a non-endemic country who contracted the disease while living in a leprosy endemic country. In the presentation and discussion, some relevant factors will be reviewed and discussed that may play a role in the transmission, susceptibility and clinical development of the disease.

Bone and joint infection after traumatic implantation of Scedosporium prolificans treated with voriconazole and surgery

Scedosporium prolificans is an environmental mould that may cause local infection in bone and joints after traumatic implantation, or generalized infection in immunocompromised patients. The fungus is highly drug resistant, both in vitro and in vivo. We present a case of osteomyelitis and arthritis caused by S. prolificans in a 9-y-old boy whose knee had been punctured by a hawthorn spike. Treatment with different drugs was difficult and arthrodesis was necessary. Concomitantly, voriconazole was given, and after three months bone biopsies were sterile despite a high in vitro MIC-value of the fungus against voriconazole. Reversible skin depigmentation and fingernail oncholysis appeared toward the end of 17 months of voriconazole treatment. Twelve months after discontinuation of treatment, no signs of relapse were detected.

CONCLUSION

Voriconazole may be a valuable adjunct to surgical treatment of bone and joint infection by Scedosporium prolificans.

Positive culture in allograft ACL-reconstruction: what to do?

The transmission of disease or infection from the donor to the recipient is always a risk with the use of allografts. We carried out a research study on the behavioural pattern of implanted allografts, which were initially stored in perfect conditions (all cultures being negative) but later presented positive cultures at the implantation stage. Because there is no information available on how to deal with this type of situation, our aim was to set guidelines on the course of action which would be required in such a case. We conducted a retrospective study of 181 patients who underwent an ACL reconstruction using BPTB allografts. All previous bone and blood cultures and tests for hepatitis B and C, syphilis and HIV were negative. An allograft sample was taken for culture in the operating theatre just before its implantation. The results of the cultures were obtained 3-5 days after the operation. We had 24 allografts with positive culture (13.25%) after the implantation with no clinical infection in any of these patients. Positive cultures could be caused by undetected contamination while harvesting, storing or during manipulation before implantation. The lack of clinical signs of infection during the follow-up of our patients may indicate that no specific treatment-other than an antibiotic protocol-would be required when facing a case of positive culture of a graft piece after its implantation.

Septic arthritis caused by Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae infection after arthroscopically assisted anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction

A case of septic arthritis caused by Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, after an arthroscopically assisted anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) substitution in a non-immunosuppressed patient is described. An 18-year-old man underwent an ACL reconstruction with a quadruple hamstring graft. Eight days postoperatively, the patient developed fever, knee pain, and effusion without erythema or suppuration. He was readmitted to the hospital with the diagnosis of septic arthritis. The patient's erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein level, and white blood cell count were high. The joint was aspirated and the fluid was sent for cultures that revealed the presence of E rhusiopathiae. E rhusiopathiae is widespread in nature, it is transmitted by direct cutaneous laceration, and it causes septic arthritis, meningitis, endocarditis, and renal failure in immunosuppressed people with poor prognosis. In our case, the infection was treated with arthroscopic lavage and debridement, retention of the graft and hardware, and intravenous antibiotic administration for 6 weeks, followed by oral administration for 16 weeks.

Recurrent crepitant cellulitis caused by Clostridium perfringens

A previously healthy 13-year-old boy developed extensive subcutaneous emphysema of the lower limb after a penetrating injury to the knee. Clostridium perfringens was isolated from the wound. Despite surgical debridement and appropriate antibiotics, the emphysema recurred, and prolonged antibiotic treatment was required. This case highlights the distinction between gas gangrene and the lesser known entity of clostridial crepitant cellulitis.

Septic arthritis of the knee caused by Edwardsiella tarda after a catfish puncture wound

Anglers are wary of catfish as their sharp fin spines may cause injury and, in some species, envenomation. We describe another complication of catfish spine injury--septic arthritis caused by Edwardsiella tarda. We believe this is the first report of this organism causing septic arthritis.