A 2014 study revealed that Elizabethkingia is an emerging bacterial pathogen for hospital environments, with its incidence in intensive care units rising since 2004.[10] About 5-10 cases of Elizabethkingia are reported per state in the United States every year.[3] A recent study showed that incidence rates for Elizabethkingia increased by 432.1% for 2016–2017 over the incidence for 2009–2015.[11] It possesses genes conferring antibiotic resistance and virulence. Combined with a lack of effective therapeutic regimens, this leads to high mortality rates.[10] Due to the growing incidence rates, lack of treatments, and high mortality rate, intensive prevention of contamination is necessary.[11]
One of the more significant risk factors for Elizabethkingia is whether mechanical ventilation was used with the patient. Because it can form a biofilm in moist environments, water or water-related equipment can also aid in the transfer of Elizabethkinga in hospital environments.[11]
In children
Neonatal meningitis is the most common presentation of Elizabethkingia for children. Recent studies suggest that approximately 31% of children that have Elizabethkingia pass away from the infection, with an average life expectancy of 27 days from onset of symptoms.[12] For the children who recover from Elizabethkingia, about 48% report typical development and full recovery. 30% indicated an onset of hydrocephalus post-recovery. Many other cases included various onsets post-recovery, including motor deficits, cognitive deficits, ongoing seizures, spasticity, and/or hearing loss.[12]
Elizabethkingia infections in dogs and cats
A 2021 retrospective review of 86 Elizabethkingia veterinary diagnostic laboratory results from US dogs and cats found 26 E. meningoseptica, 1 E. miricola, and 59 unspeciated Elizabethkingia isolates from nine US states, demonstrating that Elizabethkingia infections in animals may increase risks to humans.[13]
^King EO (1959). "Studies on a group of previously unclassified bacteria associated with meningitis in infants". American Journal of Clinical Pathology. 31 (3): 241–7. doi:10.1093/ajcp/31.3.241. PMID13637033.
^Li Y, Kawamura Y, Fujiwara N, Naka T, Liu H, Huang X, Kobayashi K, Ezaki T (2003). "Chryseobacterium miricola sp. nov., a novel species isolated from condensation water of space station Mir". Systematic and Applied Microbiology. 26 (4): 523–8. doi:10.1078/072320203770865828. PMID14666980.
^Weese, J., Sobkowich, K. E., Poljak, Z., & Bernardo, T. M. (2023). Isolation of Elizabethkingia spp. from Diagnostic Specimens from Dogs and Cats, United States, 2019–2021. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 29(7), 1488-1489; https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2907.230218.
