A cluster of 11 cases of Listeria monocytogenes bacteremia in Kyoto, Japan

IF 1.7 4区医学 Q3 INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy Pub Date : 2025-12-05 DOI:10.1016/j.jiac.2025.102887

Hajime Tsuboi , Shin Matsubara , Yoshiyuki Kawahara , Kenji Konaka , Kaori Tamai , Daisuke Yokoi , Yoshihiro Tanabe , Naohisa Fujita , Satoru Shikata

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

Listeria monocytogenes infection, known as listeriosis, is relatively uncommon. However, in elderly or immunocompromised patients, it can lead to severe manifestations such as meningitis and bacteremia, making it a clinically important disease. The primary route of transmission is through ingestion of contaminated food, and since a wide range of food items may be involved, close collaboration with public health authorities is essential for effective source identification.

Case report

We encountered 11 cases of Listeria monocytogenes bacteremia within a limited region over the course of one month. Whole-genome sequencing revealed that the isolates were highly genetically related. Notably, the patients resided in different municipalities, suggesting exposure to a widely distributed food source. However, under the current Japanese legal framework, bacteremia is not a notifiable condition, which hindered timely identification of the infection source.

Conclusion

This case series underscores challenges in both clinical practice and the public health system in Japan, highlighting how such rare, genetically related clusters of bacteremia, occurring within a short period and across multiple municipalities, can easily be overlooked under the current surveillance framework.

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日本京都11例单核增生李斯特菌菌血症聚集性报告

背景：单核细胞增生李斯特菌感染，又称李斯特菌病，是相对罕见的。然而，在老年人或免疫功能低下的患者中，可导致脑膜炎和菌血症等严重表现，使其成为临床上重要的疾病。主要传播途径是通过摄入受污染的食物，由于可能涉及多种食品，因此与公共卫生当局密切合作对于有效查明来源至关重要。病例报告：在一个月内，我们在有限的区域内遇到了11例单核细胞增生李斯特菌血症。全基因组测序结果显示，分离株具有高度的遗传相关性。值得注意的是，患者居住在不同的城市，这表明他们接触过广泛分布的食物来源。然而，在目前的日本法律框架下，菌血症不是一种必须报告的疾病，这阻碍了及时识别感染源。该系列病例凸显了日本临床实践和公共卫生系统面临的挑战，突出了在短时间内发生并跨越多个城市的这种罕见的、遗传相关的菌血症聚集性病例在当前的监测框架下很容易被忽视。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy INFECTIOUS DISEASES-PHARMACOLOGY & PHARMACY

CiteScore

4.10

自引率

4.50%

发文量

303

审稿时长

47 days

期刊介绍： The Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy (JIC) — official journal of the Japanese Society of Chemotherapy and The Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases — welcomes original papers, laboratory or clinical, as well as case reports, notes, committee reports, surveillance and guidelines from all parts of the world on all aspects of chemotherapy, covering the pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, and control of infection, including treatment with anticancer drugs. Experimental studies on animal models and pharmacokinetics, and reports on epidemiology and clinical trials are particularly welcome.