Enterobacter bacteremia: a review of 58 episodes.

This report reviews 58 episodes of enterobacter bacteremia in 55 patients during a 66-month period at a 750-bed community teaching hospital in USA. The median age of patients was 65 years and 38% of the patients were older than 70 years. All patients had underlying conditions: rapidly fatal (7%), ultimately fatal (33%) and non-fatal (60%). Nosocomial acquisition of bacteremia occurred in 72% of episodes. 20 episodes (34.5%) were polymicrobial bacteremia. The major portal of entry was the lungs (34%). The overall mortality was 69%. Factors that adversely influenced the mortality rate were nosocomial acquisition (p less than 0.02), rapidly fatal and ultimately fatal underlying conditions (p less than 0.02), and lungs as the portal of entry (p less than 0.05).