Case Study 2: An 85-year-old male was admitted to the emer…
Case Study 2: An 85-year-old male was admitted to the emergency room of a New York City hospital suffering from breathing difficulties and coughing. He had a high fever, cough, and chest pain. He had presented to his local physician 3 days previously complaining of fever, headache, malaise, and pneumonia-like respiratory symptoms. A year ago he moved into a large long-term care facility after his wife died and he has been suffering from type two diabetes for the last thirty years. Sputum was collected for culture and sensitivity. A sputum gram stain indicated the presence of many white blood cells and pleomorphic gram-negative coccobacilli. The organism causing the infection did not grow on the traditional media for sputum culture. An additional urine specimen for antigen testing was then collected and sent to a reference laboratory to confirm the diagnosis. Case Study 2 Question 1: What was the most likely etiologic agent of infection in this patient?