Xu DZ, Tan QH. Infection with Listeria monocytogenes meningoencephalitis: A case report. World J Clin Cases 2024; 12(33): 6629-6634 [PMID: 39600479 DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i33.6629]
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (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: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Clin Cases. Nov 26, 2024; 12(33): 6629-6634 Published online Nov 26, 2024. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i33.6629
Infection with Listeria monocytogenes meningoencephalitis: A case report
Da-Zhen Xu, Quan-Hui Tan
Da-Zhen Xu, Department of Nursing, Shanghai Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, China
Quan-Hui Tan, Department of Infectious Disease, Shanghai Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, China
Author contributions: Xu DZ and Tan QH jointly collected the data and co-authored this paper. Both authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript for publication.
Supported byNational Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 82100631.
Informed consent statement: Informed consent for the publication of this article was obtained from the patient.
Conflict-of-interest statement: None of the authors have any conflict of interest to declare.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: We 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/
Received: May 1, 2024 Revised: September 5, 2024 Accepted: September 9, 2024 Published online: November 26, 2024 Processing time: 149 Days and 3.4 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Listeria meningitis is an infectious disease of the central nervous system caused by Listeria monocytogenes. This bacterium is widely present in the natural environment and can be transmitted through channels such as food and water. Patients usually show symptoms such as fever, headache, and neck stiffness. In severe cases, coma, convulsions, or even death may occur. Traditional diagnostic methods, such as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture and serological tests, have certain limitations. Although CSF culture is the “gold standard” for diagnosis, it is time-consuming and has a relatively low positivity rate. Serological detection may also result in false positive or false negative results. The emergence of metagenomic sequencing (mNGS) technology has led to a significant breakthrough in diagnosing Listeria meningitis, allowing quick and accurate detection of various pathogens in samples.
CASE SUMMARY
Here, we present the case of a previously healthy 64-year-old woman diagnosed with Listeria meningitis using mNGS. She was successfully treated with intravenous ampicillin and meropenem, without any complications.
CONCLUSION
Listeria meningitis must be considered, especially in patients who fail to show improvement with first-line antibiotic treatments. mNGS significantly reduces the diagnosis time, supporting timely treatment of patients.
Core Tip: Listeria meningitis is a potentially serious condition with a high associated mortality rate, making its early diagnosis crucial. In immunocompromised patients, active administration of first-line antibiotics can help achieve better clinical outcomes.
