Community-acquired Pseudomonas stutzeri vertebral osteomyelitis in a previously healthy patient: Case report and review

Pseudomonas stutzeri is a rare pathogen, and its recovery is often associat ed with colonization and contamination. We report a case that, to our knowl edge, is the first of community-acquired P. stutzeri vertebral osteomyeliti s in a previously healthy patient, and we review the literature regarding i nfections with this uncommon organism. Of the 29 previously reported cases of P. stutzeri infection cited in the literature, only two resulted in deat h, reflecting the relatively low degree of virulence of this organism. Pred isposing risk factors for P. stutzeri infection can be categorized as follo ws: (1) previous surgery or procedure (implying probable nosocomial acquisi tion), with or without a foreign body; (2) immunocompromise (an underlying predisposition to infection by an organism with low virulence); (3) immunoc ompromise and a previous procedure; and (4) previous trauma or superficial infection, with or without possible nosocomial contamination, Our patient l acked any known risk factors for either pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis or P. stutzeri infection.