First Report of Bacteremia Caused by Clostridium cadaveris in China

BACKGROUND: Bacteremia caused by C. cadaveris is an extremely rare infection that accounts for 0.5–2% of all positive blood cultures. C. cadaveris is an opportunistic agent that is highly lethal in immunocompromised or epithelial barrier disruption hosts. CASE PRESENTATION: A 74-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with a high fever. The patient was diagnosed with an abdominal infection after a bowel invasion and recurrence of an ovarian tumor after surgery. Blood sample culturing yielded transparent, smooth, moist, slightly raised colonies without a hemolytic ring. C. cadaveris was identified by gram staining and MALDI-TOF MS. 16S rRNA gene sequencing confirmed a sequence homologous to C. cadaveris in the GenBank database. Drug susceptibility testing showed that C. cadaveris was sensitive to cefoxitin, clindamycin, imipenem, meropenem, metronidazole, and vancomycin. After treatment, the patient’s body temperature was normal and she was discharged from the hospital. CONCLUSION: This is the first case report of bacteremia caused by C. cadaveris in China and also the first report of identifying C. cadaveris in clinical specimens by MALDI-TOF MS. This case study could increase the awareness of these infections in China.