Frontiers in Medicine· 2026Q1· Case report
Case Report: Fournier's gangrene caused by Gleimia hominis
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- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
A 71-year-old man with Fournier's gangrene was successfully treated after Gleimia hominis was identified as the causative agent, allowing for antimicrobial de-escalation.
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Key points
- Gleimia hominis, a rare anaerobic bacterium, was identified as the cause of Fournier's gangrene in a 71-year-old male patient.
- The patient initially received piperacillin-tazobactam without improvement.
- Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was used for bacterial identification.
- Antimicrobial therapy was successfully de-escalated from meropenem to ampicillin-sulbactam, and then to oral amoxicillin-clavulanate, following G. hominis identification.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Background Fournier's gangrene is typically polymicrobial necrotizing fasciitis of the perineal/genital regions. Gleimia hominis (Actinomycetaceae) is a rare anaerobic Gram-positive rod whose clinical role remains poorly defined. Case presentation A 71-year-old man with Parkinson disease, dementia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was transferred for worsening fever and perineal swelling despite 6 days of piperacillin-tazobactam. Computed tomography showed a rim-enhancing fluid collection extending from the left lower abdominal wall to the left hemiscrotum with gas formation. Fournier's gangrene was diagnosed, and empiric meropenem was started together with surgical incision and drainage. G. hominis was isolated from the abscess culture and identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Antimicrobial therapy was de-escalated to ampicillin-sulbactam, followed by oral amoxicillin-clavulanate, with clinical improvement. Conclusion This case highlights the pathogenic potential of G. hominis in necrotizing soft tissue infection and the value of precise microbiologic identification for antimicrobial de-escalation.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Frontiers in Medicine, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Microbiology
MicrobiologyMedicine