Infection caused by Francisella philomiragia (formerly Yersinia philomiragia). A newly recognized human pathogen

We evaluated the clinical characteristics of patients with Francisella philomiragia (formerly Yersinia philomiragia) isolated from normally sterile sites. Isolates from 14 patients were received by the Centers for Disease Control between 1975 and 1987: 9 were from blood; 2 from lung biopsies; and 1 each from pleural, peritoneal, and cerebrospinal fluid. Underlying problems included chronic granulomatous disease in 5 patients, near-drowning in 5, and a myeloproliferative disease in 2. All 13 patients for whom records were available had a febrile syndrome compatible with bacterial infection. Pneumonia and fever-bacteremia were the commonest clinical syndromes reported. In 7 cases, F. philomiragia was the only sterile-site isolate, and the clinical syndrome did not resolve without appropriate antibiotics. Familiarity with this organism is important because of its ability to cause serious disease in chronic granulomatous disease and near-drowning patients. Further study may yield new insights into pathogenic and host defense mechanisms.