Korean J Infect Dis.  1998 Feb;30(1):101-105.

A Sporadic Case of Fulminant Meningococcemia

• Lee JS
• Cheong HJ
• Woo HJ
• Kim WJ
• Kim MJ
• Park SC

Abstract

Meningococcal disease is still a major cause of sporadic endemic and epidemic diseases throughout the world. In Korea meningococcal epidemics have been documented occasionally in military recruits, where as sporadic cases rarely reported. Meningococcemia represents a part of the various spectrum of the illness, and its clinical manifestations varied from mild fever to fulminant catastrophic events within a few hours after onset of symptoms. We experienced a case of a sporadic fulminant meningococcemia presenting with fever, petechiae, and purpura. The patient was a 21-year old female nursing school student. She had high fever, petechiae and purpura on both lower extremities, which spreaded to the whole body with peripheral gangrene during her admission days. Despite the treatment with ceftriaxone and chloramphenicol, refractory shock developed. She expired on the third day after onset of symptoms. Neisseria meningitidis was cultured from the blood after she died.

Keyword

Meningococcemia; Sporadic; Fulminant

MeSH Terms

Ceftriaxone
Chloramphenicol
Female
Fever
Gangrene
Humans
Korea
Lower Extremity
Military Personnel
Neisseria meningitidis
Purpura
Schools, Nursing
Shock
Young Adult
Ceftriaxone
Chloramphenicol