An Unusual Cause of Peritonitis in a Peritoneal Dialysis Patient: Leifsonia aquatica

Peritonitis continues to be an important cause of catheter losses in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Although the causes of peritonitis are predominantly Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria and Fungi also appear as causative agents. Recently, rare atypical agents have been reported more frequently in patients with peritonitis. The disease course, response to treatment, and results of peritonitis cases with these rare etiologies in the literature will be a guide for other clinicians. Here, we present Leifsonia aquatica peritonitis in a 23-year-old female patient who was hospitalized for peritonitis. This microorganism, which is usually encountered as an infectious agent in extraperitoneal areas in immunosuppressed patients, has been reported to be extremely rare in PD patients as a cause of peritonitis. Leifsonia is a highly resistant microorganism living in the surrounding waters, and all peritonitis cases with this agent resulted in the loss of the peritoneal catheter. Leifsonia peritonitis is a treatment-resistant infection that often leads to catheter loss despite appropriate antibiotic therapy. These cases can be prevented by appropriate patient selection and training in PD techniques.
Cite this article as: Özkarabıyık N, Öztürk İ, Erken E, Güngör Ö, Altunören O. An unusual cause of peritonitis in a peritoneal dialysis patient: Leifsonia aquatica. Turk J Nephrol. 2021; 30(4): 322-325.