Brain Abscess withCorynebacterium hemolyticum: Report of a Case

Abstract

A fatal case of mixed infection due to an unusual combination of Corynebacterium hemolyticum and Fusobacterium necrophorum in a 17-year-old boy is reported. Both organisms were isolated from the blood. C. hemolyticum was isolated from the cerebrospinal fluid and a brain abscess; pleomorphic Gram-negative bacilli also were demonstrated in the Gram-stained smear of the brain abscess material. Postmortem examination failed to demonstrate a possible site of origin of the infection.