Aerococcus christensenii as Part of Severe Polymicrobial Chorioamnionitis in a Pregnant Woman

Chorioamnionitis is a potentially life threatening infection of the fetal membranes, commonly caused by ascending bacteria from the vagina and cervix. In our case, a healthy nullipara with a term pregnancy presented clinical signs of infection after induced labour with an intracervical balloon. Thick green and foul smelling amniotic fluid was observed and culture showed massive growth of Aerococcus christensenii, a facultative anaerob species found in the human vagina, previously only rarely alleged to cause invasive infection. Additional testing with 16S rRNA gene analysis also identified the presence of Gemella asaccharolytica, Snethia sanguinegens, Parvimonas micra and Streptobacillus moniliformis. The patient was treated with cefuroxime and metronidazole and recovered quickly. The newborn showed no signs of infection. This case points at the possible role of these pathogens in female genital tract infections. The case also underlines the importance of the combination of culture and culture independent diagnostic approaches to reveal possible polymicrobial natures of selected infections, in this case chorioamnionitis.