Table 1.
Clinical characteristics of patients with F. nucleatum, F necrophorum, or F. varium infections
| F. nucleatum (N=19) | F. necrophorum (N=24) | F. varium (N=43) | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex | 0.376 | |||
| Male | 13 (68) | 18 (75) | 36 (84) | |
| Female | 6 (32) | 6 (25) | 7 (16) | |
| Age in years | 59 (35–76) | 27 (19–66) | 59 (40–73) | <0.001 |
| WBC count, ×109/L | 7.53 (0.48–13.15) | 14.66 (7.60–19.39) | 9.93 (5.27–16.14) | <0.001 |
| Clinical specimen type | <0.001 | |||
| Blood | 11 (58) | 3 (13) | 1 (2) | |
| Aspirate from head and neck | 4 (21) | 18 (75) | 0 (0) | |
| Peritoneal fluid | 2 (11) | 2 (8) | 38 (88) | |
| Others* | 2 (11) | 1 (4) | 4 (9) | |
| Comorbidity | ||||
| DM | 4 (21) | 1 (4) | 6 (14) | 0.004 |
| Renal failure | 2 (11) | 0 (0) | 9 (21) | 0.077 |
| Heart failure | 1 (5) | 0 (0) | 1 (2) | 0.257 |
| Coronary artery disease (myocardial infarction) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 5 (12) | 0.002 |
| Cerebrovascular disease | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 1 (2) | 0.564 |
| Chronic pulmonary disease | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (5) | 0.102 |
| Malignancy | 10 (53) | 3 (13) | 29 (67) | <0.001 |
| Metastasis | 2 (11) | 1 (4) | 6 (14) | 0.066 |
| CCI 0/1/≥2 | 4/2/13 (21/11/68) | 19/2/3 (79/8/13) | 4/1/38 (9/2/88) | <0.001 |
| CRP, mg/L | 69.45 (10.21–252.88) | 51.59 (3.97–145.87) | 94.9 (20.5–204.62) | 0.096 |
| Current cancer diagnosis | 10 (53) | 3 (13) | 29 (67) | <0.001 |
| Hematologic malignancy | 3 (16) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | |
| Stomach cancer | 1 (5) | 2 (9) | 3 (7) | |
| Colorectal cancer | 1 (5) | 1 (4) | 22 (51) | |
| Hepatobiliary cancer | 3 (16) | 0 (0) | 3 (7) | |
| Other cancer type† | 2 (11) | 0 (0) | 1 (2) | |
| Surgery | 7 (37) | 5 (21) | 38 (88) | <0.001 |
| GI tract surgery | 3 (16) | 2 (8) | 32 (74) | |
| Head and neck surgery | 2 (11) | 3 (13) | 0 (0) | |
| Other type of surgery | 2 (11) | 0 (0) | 6 (14) | |
| Antimicrobials prescribed | 15 (79) | 22 (92) | 42 (98) | 0.045 |
| Anti-anaerobic agents used | 12 (63) | 7 (29) | 41 (95) | <0.001 |
| Days in hospital | 16.5 (7–46) | 4 (2–14) | 28 (9–74) | <0.001 |
| Mortality | ||||
| Seven days | 1 (5) | 1 (4) | 0 (0) | 0.739 |
| 30 days | 2 (11) | 1 (4) | 3 (7) | 0.186 |
| 12 months | 3 (16) | 2 (8) | 6 (14) | 0.255 |
Data are presented as number (%) or median (10–90%-tile).
*F. nucleatum isolated from head aspirate and pleural fluid (N=1, each); F. necrophorum isolated from a deep foot wound; F. varium isolated from buttock aspirate, perianal abscess, pleural fluid, and foot tissue (N=1, each). †F. nucleatum, ovarian cancer and oral cavity cancer; F. varium, prostate cancer.
Abbreviations: CCI, Charlson comorbidity index; CRP, C-reactive protein; DM, diabetes mellitus; GI, gastrointestinal; WBC, white blood cell.