Pneumonia

Klebsiella pneumoniae

A 54 year old hospitalized female presents with sudden onset of chills, cough, fever, and pleuritic pain. She is feverish and producing "currant-jelly" sputum. Wheezing and rales are heard bilaterally. She has been in the hospital for weeks due to a chronic respiratory disease.

Labs: Culture on MacConkey's agar reveals gram negative rods that ferment lactose.

Discussion: The diagnosis of pneumonia by Klebsiella pneumoniae is made by culture of blood and sputum on a special agar such as MacConkey's agar. It is categorized with Enterobacter and Serratia as being a gram negative rod that is outside of the enteric tract. Out of the three, Klebsiella pneumoniae is considered the one that will cause disease in an immunocompetent host.

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