Sepsis Caused by Newly Identified Capnocytophaga canis Following Cat Bites: C. canis Is the Third Candidate along with C. canimorsus and C. cynodegmi Causing Zoonotic Infection.

ABSTRACT

Sepsis caused by a Capnocytophaga canis infection has only been rarely reported. A 67-year-old female with a past medical history of splenectomy was admitted to our hospital with fever and general malaise. She had been bitten by a cat. She showed disseminated intravascular coagulation and multi-organ failure because of severe sepsis. On blood culture, characteristic gram-negative fusiform rods were detected; therefore, a Capnocytophaga species infection was suspected. A nucleotide sequence analysis revealed the species to be C. canis, which was newly identified in 2016. C. canis may have low virulence in humans; however, C. canis with oxidase activity may cause severe zoonotic infection.