Severe septic shock and cardiac arrest in a patient with Vibrio metschnikovii: a case report

INTRODUCTION: Vibrio metschnikovii is a very rare species and can be fatal to patients with massive comorbidity. Until now only eight other cases have been reported. CASE PRESENTATION: This case report describes a 78-year-old Danish man who presented with fever, hypotension and unconsciousness and he developed cardiac arrest. Vibrio metschnikovii was identified in all his blood samples and effective antibiotics were initiated. CONCLUSIONS: The human sources are believed to include shrimps, birds, water, sewage and seafood. We report the first case of Vibrio metschnikovii from a Nordic country and the report shows that even though isolation of Vibrio metschnikovii from human clinical samples is very rare, it still infects humans and may be fatal, despite sufficient treatment.