A case of suspected Escherichia coli-associated meningitis accompanied by human bocavirus detection in the cerebrospinal fluid of a 13-day-old newborn

Abstract

Introduction: The human bocavirus (HBoV) type 1 is associated with respiratory infections and causes mild-to-severe disease in all age groups. The virus is also associated with infections in other sites, such as the nervous system, but little is known about the disease process. As an animal model is not available to study HBoV pathogenesis, clinical case reports, cohort studies, and cell culture data remain the major sources of information about the virus. Case presentation: This article reports a clinical case of suspected meningitis associated with HBoV-DNA detection in cerebrospinal fluid and nasopharyngeal wash, accompanied by Escherichia coli infection in a 13-day-old male patient. Conclusion: Although an etiological role of HBoV cannot be proven in this clinical case, the observations made confirm those from earlier studies. There appear to be a small number of cases in which HBoV – actively or passively – is able to pass the blood–brain barrier and contribute to clinical disease. Taking into account that there are a large number of neurological cases in which no pathogen can be detected, we suggest that detection of HBoV be included in routine cerebrospinal fluid screening protocols, particularly multiplex diagnostic assays.