enterococcus
Enterococci
Introduction
- enterococci belong to the Enterococcaceae family which belongs to the Lactobacillales
- it is a large genus of lactic acid Gram positive cocci bacteria that often occur as diplococci or in short chains and can be difficult to distinguish from streptococcus / streptococcal infections
- they survive very harsh environments including 60degC for 30minutes and resist most detergents and alcohol and can survive dessication
- some were classified as group D Streptococcus until 1984
- appears to have evolved 425mya to 500mya
- often used as the best marker of water contamination by sewage - eg. at beaches
Enterococcus faecalis
- Enterococcus faecalis formerly known as Streptococcus faecalis
- found in faeces of most healthy people
- may cause invasive infections when they possess virulence factors:
- urinary tract infections (UTIs) / cystitis - usually respond to nitrofurantoin even if VRE
- meningitis - usually after neurosurgery
- chronic prostatitis - enterococci are able to form biofilm in the prostate gland, making their eradication difficult
- recently evidence suggests patients with invasive infections have relatively high rates of occult colorectal cancer (bowel cancer) suggesting colonoscopy may be indicated especially if no source of infection is found
- antibiotic resistance is increasingly problematic:
- vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE) is a major problem in hospitals
enterococcus.txt · Last modified: 2019/06/27 03:33 by 127.0.0.1