Septicemia Caused by Vibrio fetus

Abstract

<i>Vibrio fetus</i>infections in human beings are a relatively new concern. In 1957 and 1962 King reviewed the laboratory characteristics and summarized the clinical findings in 29 patients,^1,2in 1967 Kilo et al³reported one infection and reviewed the literature in detail, and in 1966 Eden⁴reviewed published reports dealing with human vibrosis as it relates to pregnancy and perinatal mortality. Since then, several other infections have been reported in different parts of the world.^5-7This communication describes our experience at the Boston City Hospital (BCH) during the past four years. <h3>Patient Summaries</h3><h3>Patient 1.</h3> —A 72-year-old man was hospitalized on Sept 3, 1964, with diarrhea, severe dehydration of four days' duration, and prolonged cachexia. For the previous two years he had been receiving cyclophosphamide and prednisolone for the treatment of lymphosarcoma. A brief review of past admissions showed diabetes mellitus since 1955, lymphosarcoma and chronic