Eggerthella lenta

Background

• Anaerobic, non-sporulating, Gram-positive bacillus

Clinical Manifestations

• Most commonly associated with GI tract illness or with infected sacral ulcer
• Can either be monomicrobial (including disseminated infection) or, more commonly, polymicrobial with an intraabominal infection

Management

• When found in blood culture without focus, consider CT abdomen to rule out intraabdominal pathology
• Almost always susceptible to amoxicillin-clavulanate acid, cefoxitin, metronidazole, piperacillin-tazobactam, ertapenem, and meropenem
• Generally susceptible to clindamycin
• Occasionally susceptible to fluoroquinolones
• Not reliably susceptible to penicillin

Further Reading

• Clinical and Microbiological Characteristics of Eggerthella lenta Bacteremia. Clin Micro Rev. 2015;53(2):626-635. doi: 10.1128/JCM.02926-14