Rinsho Shinkeigaku (Clinical Neurology)

Brief Clinical Note

A case report of Streptococcus oralis meningitis after dental manipulation

Shoji Honda, M.D.1), Yuichiro Inatomi, M.D.1), Toshiro Yonehara, M.D.1), Yoichiro Hashimoto, M.D.2), Teruyuki Hirano, M.D.3) and Makoto Uchino, M.D.3)

1)Department of Neurology, Stroke Center, Saiseikai Kumamoto Hospital
2)Department of Neurology, Kumamoto City Hospital
3)Department of Neurology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kumamoto University

A 75-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of high fever and disturbance of consciousness 4 days after dental treatment including scaling, irrigation, and oral antibiotic for dental caries without gingivitis. A lumber puncture revealed cloudy cerebrospinal fluid (CSF); it contained 984 leukocytes/mm3, 680 mg/dl of protein, 5 mg/dl of glucose (blood sugar 233 mg/dl), and Streptococcus oralis, one of common microorganisms on the gingival, was isolated from the CSF. He was successfully treated with intravenous antibiotics. The authors believe this patient's meningitis developed as a result of bacteremia after the dental scaling in the present case.

(CLINICA NEUROL, 46: 154|156, 2006)
key words: bacterial meningitis, Streptococcus oralis, Streptococcus viridans, dental manipulation

(Received: 18-Apr-05)