Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia presenting as sternoclavicular arthritis.

Abstract

Two brief patients' histories are presented to increase clinicians' awareness of the possible presentation of staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia as a metastatic infection of the sternal joints, without endocarditis and possibly without fever or a potential portal of entry. Referred shoulder pain often mimics a benign, chronic shoulder condition, with dangerous diagnostic delays. However, common point-tenderness over the sternoclavicular joint, and increased WBC and C-reactive protein will suggest the correct diagnosis to the practitioner, confirmed by CT imaging, even before results of blood cultures are received.