ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Aorto-enteric fistula is a rare and potentially lethal entity. Its presentation may be as an enteric-paraprosthetic fistula, due to injury in the gut caused by direct contact with the vascular prosthesis. OBJECTIVE: We report a case of enteric-paraprosthetic fistulae with the unusual finding of Candida parapsilosis as the only isolated pathogen. CLINICAL CASE: A 65-year-old male, smoker, with aortobifemoral revascularisation with dacron due to aortoiliac occlusive disease, and re-intervention for thrombosis of left arm at 6 months. Hospitalisation at 22 months was required due to a toxic syndrome, which was diagnosed as enteric-paraprosthetic fistulae after complementary studies. The graft was removed and an extra-anatomic revascularisation was performed. Microbiology specimens taken from the duodenal segment in contact with the prosthesis showed the prosthetic segment and peri-prosthetic fluid were positive to C. parapsilosis. DISCUSSION: The finding of C. parapsilosis in all cultures taken during surgery, along with negative blood cultures and no other known sources of infection, is of interest. It is an unusual pathogen with low virulence and limited as regards other Candida species. Our patient had no clinical data common to cases of infection with C. parapsilosis, and the mechanism of graft infection is unknown. CONCLUSION: Graft infection by C. parapsilosis may be anecdotal. However, its consequences can also be severe. Microbiological tests can be useful to adjust antimicrobial therapy in the post-operative period, but their usefulness for determining the aetiology is doubtful, as it may be just an incidental finding.