Abstract

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNST) are the most-common cause of ventriculo-peritoneal shunt infections. Some of these strains produce a slime-like substance. We reviewed 19 episodes of ventriculoperitoneal shunt infections due to CNST in 17patients. Eleven episodes of infection were caused by slime-producing CNST and eight by non-slime- producing CNST. Shunt obstruction and abdominal pain occurred more frequently when infectious episodes were due to slime-producing CNST than to non-slime-producing CNST (P < .05). Despite appropriate antimicrobial therapy, the mean duration of fever was longer and the failure to eradicate the infecting organisms was more frequent when the infectious episodes were due to slime-producing CNST than to non-slime-producing CNST (P < .025). Discriminate function analysis found, however, that only failure to eradicate the infecting organism (by antimicrobial therapy) occurred more frequently in infectious episodes due to slime-producing CNST than to non-slime-producing CNST (P = .01).

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