Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Oct 16, 2022; 10(29): 10600-10605
Published online Oct 16, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i29.10600
Serratia fonticola and its role as a single pathogen causing emphysematous pyelonephritis in a non-diabetic patient: A case report
Victor Villasuso-Alcocer, Juan P Flores-Tapia, Fernando Perez-Garfias, Andrea Rochel-Perez, Nina Mendez-Dominguez
Victor Villasuso-Alcocer, Scholar at Direccion General de Calidad y Educacion en Salud, Secretaría de Salud, Mexico 11570, Mexico
Juan P Flores-Tapia, Fernando Perez-Garfias, Andrea Rochel-Perez, Urology Department, Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad de la Peninsula de Yucatan, Merida 97300, Yucatan, Mexico
Nina Mendez-Dominguez, Research and Learning, Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad de la Peninsula de Yucatan, Merida 97130, Yucatan, Mexico
Author contributions: Mendez-Dominguez N and Flores-Tapia JP contributed to conceptualization; Flores-Tapia JP and Perez-Garfias F contributed to clinical management; Rochel-Perez A, Perez-Garfias F and Villasuso-Alcocer V contributed to review investigation; Rochel-Perez A and Villasuso-Alcocer V contributed to writing and original draft preparation; Mendez-Dominguez N and Flores-Tapia JP contributed to review and editing; Mendez-Dominguez N and Flores-Tapia JP contributed to project administration; all authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from the patient.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Nina Mendez-Dominguez, DSc, MD, PhD, Doctor, Research Scientist, Research and Learning, Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad de la Peninsula de Yucatan, Fraccionamiento Altabrisa, Street 7 Number 433 Merida, Merida 97130, Yucatan, Mexico. ninamendezdominguez@gmail.com
Received: March 15, 2022
Peer-review started: March 15, 2022
First decision: April 13, 2022
Revised: April 15, 2022
Accepted: August 21, 2022
Article in press: August 21, 2022
Published online: October 16, 2022
Processing time: 197 Days and 14.6 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Diagnosis of emphysematous pyelonephritis has been described around the world for some decades, frequently associated with Escherichia coli and other anaerobic, gas-forming bacteria and mostly in patients living with diabetes. We present a case report of emphysematous pyelonephritis in a non-diabetic patient caused by Serratia fonticola as well as a brief literature review to draw attention to this rare pathogen as a cause of pyelonephritis.

CASE SUMMARY

A 38-year-old female presented with fever, severe pain in the right flank and changes in urinary habits. She was admitted, and emphysematous pyelonephritis was confirmed by an abdominal computerized tomography and urine cultures; the latter showed Serratia fonticola as a single pathogen. After 3 d of being treated with piperacillin/tazobactam and percutaneous drainage she became afebrile, and the gas presence reduced.

CONCLUSION

Emphysematous pyelonephritis infections in non-diabetic patients are rare but can be severe and life-threatening. This case suggests that Serratia fonticola infection can occur in patients undergoing invasive or instrumented procedures.

Keywords: Serratia fonticola; Emphysematous pyelonephritis; Urinary tract infections; Nephrolithiasis; Case report

Core Tip: Serratia fonticola may still be rare as a human pathogen, either associated to asymptomatic conditions or merely a bystander among other agents, but its incidence may relate to severe cases when patients undergo invasive, instrumented procedures or underlying conditions, as presented in this case of the female who developed emphysematous pyelonephritis.