A case of ventilator-associated pneumonia due to Pantoea agglomerans]

Pantoea species, which are the members of Enterobacteriaceae family are gram-negative bacilli that are frequently found on many plants and in soil. They may lead to localized infections in healthy subjects and systemic infections in immunosuppressed patients. In this case report a ventilator-associated pneumoniae due to Pantoea agglomerans was presented. A 55 year-old male patient with chronic renal failure was hospitalized in intensive care unit following cardiopulmonary arrest. The patient developed fever (38.8 degrees C), had pulmonary infiltrations in chest X-ray and leucocytosis. Treatment with piperacillin-tazobactam was initiated upon diagnosis of nosocomial pneumoniae. Bacterial growth from the deep tracheal aspirate of the patient was identified as P.agglomerans by VITEK2 automated system (bioMerieux, France) and the identification was confirmed by conventional microbiological methods. Since the strain was susceptible to the cephoperazon-sulbactam, tobramycin, tetracycline, gentamicin and levofloxacine, the treatment was changed to levofloxacine and cephoperazon-sulbactam and the patient improved. This case was presented to withdraw attention to rare opportunistic pathogens that may lead to nosocomial infections particularly in patients with underlying diseases.