Mc. Martin et al., ENDARTERITIS AND MYCOTIC AORTIC-ANEURYSM CAUSED BY AN ORAL-STRAIN OF ACTINOBACILLUS-ACTINOMYCETEMCOMITANS, European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases, 17(2), 1998, pp. 104-107
Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans was isolated from blood cultures
of a 33-year-old febrile patient with a previously undiagnosed coarcta
tion of the aorta. Subgingival samples from diseased periodontal pocke
ts revealed the presence of A. actinomycetemcomitans. An infected (myc
otic) aortic aneurysm and endarteritis were diagnosed and surgically t
reated. The identity of blood and oral clinical isolates of A. actinom
ycetemcomitans was supported by genetic analysis, including finger-pri
nting by restriction fragment length polymorphism ribotyping, and rand
om amplified polymorphic DNA; biotyping; and antibiogram typing. These
data strongly suggest that the periodontal pockets were the primary s
ource of A. actinomycetemcomitans endarteritis in this case.