Clostridium sordellii (Paraclostridium sordellii)

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Gram stain Culture

General information
- Taxonomy
  Family: Clostridiaceae
  Genus: Paraclostridium sordellii
  Formely: Clostridium sordellii
  
  Natural habitats
  Ubiquitous in nature
  
  Clinical significance.
  Is capable of causing pneumonia, endocarditis, arthritis, peritonitis and myonecrosis, bacteremia and sepsis occur rarely.
  
  Most cases of sepsis from C. sordellii occur in patients with underlying conditions.
  
  Severe toxic shock syndrome among previously healthy persons has been described in a small number of C. sordellii cases, most often associated with gynecologic infections in women and infections of the umbilical stump in newborns.
  
  It has also been described in post-partum females, medically induced abortions, injection drug users and trauma cases.
Gram stain
- Gram positive, straight rods,
  
  0.5-1.7 x 1.6-20.6 µm,
  
  many free spores, occurring singly or in pairs.
  
  Spores oval / central or subterminal
  Swelling of the cell positive (slightly)
Culture characteristics
- Obligate anaerobic
  
  BBAØ: colonies are 1-4 mm in diameter, circular to irregular, flat or raised, translucent or opaque, gray or chalk-white, with a dull or shiny surface, a granular or mottled internal structure and a scalloped, lobate or entire margin;
  
  hemolyse is variable
Characteristics
References
- James Versalovic et al.(2011) Manual of Clinical Microbiology 10th Edition