Elizabethkingia meningoseptica: A Rare Cause of Infection in Neonates

Abstract

Elizabethkingia meningoseptica is known to cause nosocomial infection, particularly among preterm neonates, causing high rates of mortality and significant neurological morbidity amid survivors. The disease presents several challenges in diagnosis and management due to its rarity and multidrug resistance. With the increasing incidence of preterm births in Middle East; and consequently, prolonged NICU admissions and hospital acquired infections, it is essential for the physicians to have knowledge on diagnostic and therapeutic strategies about an organism that could possibly affect such infants and cause devastating outcomes. Our study’s primary objective is to give neonatologists a comprehensive overview of E.meningoseptica with its presenting features, risk factors, diagnostic modalities, management protocols and complications. We conducted a literature search on E.meningoseptica infection in neonates, and included a total of 19 reports of this disease, published between 2018-2023 in our study. The cases we reviewed consisted of both preterm and term neonates showing various presentations of the infection with the most common being meningitis. Rapid diagnosis through blood and CSF cultures or utilizing automated systems, together with the initiation of appropriate combination antibiotic therapy is indispensable. In addition, practicing rigorous infection control policies, and having a high index of suspicion when dealing with cases of neonatal sepsis and/ or meningitis is the cornerstone of management.