A 70-year-old man with a history of tongue cancer presented with Fournier's gangrene caused by Listeria monocytogenes serotype 4b.
Surgical debridement revealed undiagnosed rectal adenocarcinoma. The patient did not have an apparent dietary or travel history but reported daily consumption of sashimi (raw fish). Old age and immunodeficiency due to rectal adenocarcinoma may have supported the direct invasion of L monocytogenes from the tumour. The present article describes the first reported case of Fournier's gangrene caused by L monocytogenes. The authors suggest that raw ready-to-eat seafood consumption be recognized as a risk factor for listeriosis, especially in cases of skin and soft tissue infection.
Written by:
Asahata S, Hirai Y, Ainoda Y, Fujita T, Okada Y, Kikuchi K. Are you the author?
Department of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo Women's Medical University; Division of Biomedical Food Research, National Institute of Health Sciences, Tokyo, Japan.
Reference: Can J Infect Dis Med Microbiol. 2015 Jan-Feb;26(1):44-6.
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 25798155