Fatal Klebsiella pneumoniae Meningitis and Emphysematous Brain Abscess After Endoscopic Variceal Ligation in a Patient with Liver Cirrhosis and Diabetes Mellitus

• Main Authors: Hsin-I Shih, Hsin-Chun Lee, Chiao-Hsiung Chuang, Wen-Chien Ko
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2006-01-01
• Series: Journal of the Formosan Medical Association
• Subjects: antimicrobial prophylaxis; emphysematous brain abscess; endoscopic variceal ligation; Klebsiella pneumoniae; meningitis
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0929664609602758

Procedure-related bacterial infections may complicate esophageal variceal ligation in cirrhosis patients. Here, we report a 58-year-old man with underlying diabetes and liver cirrhosis who developed Klebsiella pneumoniae meningitis and brain abscess with gas formation in brain parenchyma and ventricles after this procedure. Despite administration of appropriate antimicrobial therapy, he became comatose on the 3rd day of acute illness and died on the 4th day of hospitalization. This case highlights the indication for antimicrobial prophylaxis in cirrhotic patients with gastrointestinal bleeding, and the need for early and heightened awareness of central nervous system infections in cirrhotic patients with hepatic encephalopathy.