Chryseobacterium/Elizabethkingia species infections in Saudi Arabia

Objectives: To describe the epidemiological, clinical, and outcome data of patients infected or colonized with Chryseobacterium/Elizabethkingia spp including antibiotic susceptibility patterns. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. All patients infected or colonized by Chryseobacterium/Elizabethkingia spp who were admitted between June 2013 and May 2019 were included. Data were extracted from patient electronic medical records. Results: We enrolled 27 patients (13 males and 14 females) with a mean age of 35.6 years. Chryseobacterium/Elizabethkingia spp were isolated from blood cultures (n=13, 48%) and tracheal aspirations (n=11, 41%). The most frequent species isolated was Elizabethkingia meningoseptica (n=22). Although 6 patients were considered colonized, the remaining 21 patients presented with ventilator associated pneumonia (n=9), central line associated bloodstream infection (n=4), septic shock (n=4), or isolated bacteremia (n=4). In 25 cases the infections were health-care related. Three patients (11%) died within 28 days. Twenty-six isolates (96.5%) were resistant to carbapenems. Moxifloxacin and cotrimoxazole were the most active antibiotics. Conclusion: Chryseobacterium/Elizabethkingia spp infection is rare, but can be responsible for severe hospital acquired infections. Cotrimoxazole and fluoroquinolone are the most effective antibiotic treatments.