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A case of Vibrio vulnificus septicaemia acquired in Victoria
Author(s) -
Maxwell Ellen L,
Mayall Barrie C,
Pearson Stephen R,
Stanley Peter A
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1991.tb121039.x
Subject(s) - vibrio vulnificus , necrotising fasciitis , medicine , bulla (seal) , surgical debridement , myositis , debridement (dental) , fasciitis , shock (circulatory) , dermatology , surgery , pathology , biology , lung , bacteria , genetics
The clinical features and laboratory findings of a case of Vibrio vulnificus septicaemia are reported. The illness occurred in a preViously well 68‐year‐old man who was accidentally spiked in the buttock by the dorsal spine of a flathead caught in Tamboon Inlet, near Mallacoota, Victoria. The clinical picture of an acute septicaemic illness with shock, associated with metastatic eellulitic lesions on the lower limbs progressing to bulla formation, skin necrosis, necrotising fasciitis and myositis, is characteristic of V.vulnificus septicaemia. It would appear that tetracyclines are the drugs of choice. Surgical debridement may be necessary. Clinical recognition of this rare but characteristic illness will facilitate early effective chemotherapy. To our knowledge this is the southern‐most case reported in Australia.