Two cases of discitis due to Propionibacterium acnes
Crouzet, J.; Claudepierre, P.; Aribi, E.H.; Malbrunot, C.; Beraneck, L.; Juan, L.H.; Larget-Piet, B.
Revue du Rhumatisme 65(1): 68-71
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 1169-8446 PMID: 9523390 Document Number: 490728
We report two cases of discitis due to Propionibacterium acnes and review previously published cases of bone and joint infections in which this organism was recovered as a pure culture. P. acnes is an anaerobic organism usually considered a normal inhabitant of the skin but capable of producing a variety of infections including discitis, osteitis, arthritis, and chest wall osteitis. Most patients were immunocompetent. A few infections occurred spontaneously, whereas others were secondary to a break in the skin or to implantation of foreign material into the body for instance during internal fixation of a fracture or arthroplasty. Cases of P. acnes chest wall infection have been reported in patients with palmoplantar pustulosis or chronic or multifocal osteitis, supporting a role for P. acnes in SAPHO syndrome.