Fatal Chromobacterium violaceum septicemia in a South Indian adult

Abstract

Chromobacterium violaceum is a rare human pathogen that causes potentially fatal infections especially in the tropical regions. Limited awareness about this pathogen and inappropriate antibiotic therapy are some of the factors contributing to the high mortality rate. To date there have been only eight cases reported from India of which only one is an adult. To the best of our knowledge, we report here the first case of a 40-year-old man from South India with septicemic C. Violaceum infection and septic arthritis.