A case report and literature review of a death caused by Aeromonas daca complicated with septic shock

Abstract Background: For decades, Aeromonas daca has often been mistaken for Aeromonas hydrophila by phenotypic identification systems and shows obvious characteristics of virulence. To our knowledge, a total of two English-language studies with relatively complete data were retrieved. Case presentation: The patient, a 26-year-old male with no underlying disease, was admitted to our hospital for 3 days because of cough, expectoration and shortness of breath. According to blood and lavage fluid cultures and next-generation sequencing (NGS), the patient was diagnosed with an A. daca infection. He soon deteriorated to a critical condition complicated with septic shock and died after active rescue treatment. Conclusions: A. daca infection is lethal, and an accurate taxonomy can improve our understanding of the epidemiological distribution and virulence potential of this human pathogen. Third-generation cephalosporins and carbapenems should be used cautiously in the treatment of severe A. daca infection, and the best regimen is cefepime or fluoroquinolones.