Burkholderia cepacia Vertebral Osteomyelitis Following Cesarean Section: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Abstract

The Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) initially emerged as an important opportunistic pathogen in patients with predisposing lung disease. Bcc infections outside the respiratory tract are less common, although their incidence has been increasing particularly in immunocompromised patients. We herein describe the case of a healthy young woman who started experiencing low back pain 2 weeks after an uncomplicated cesarean section. She was found to have vertebral osteomyelitis at T12-L1. CT guided biopsy was performed, and cultures grew Bcc. She was treated with 3 weeks of meropenem and 5 weeks of oral trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole with good response. No surgical intervention was warranted. We also performed a review of the literature on other existing reports. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of Bcc vertebral osteomyelitis in an immunocompetent patient following an obstetric procedure.