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A tale of caution: prolonged Bacillus clausii bacteraemia after probiotic use in an immunocompetent child
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Akshay M. Khatri1
, Shipra Rai2, Caroline Shank2, Alissa McInerney3,4, Blanka Kaplan3,4, Stefan H. F. Hagmann2,5 and Mundeep K. Kainth2,5
Abstract
Introduction. Bacillus clausii as a probiotic supplement is increasingly used in both adult and paediatric patient populations. There is limited awareness about potential adverse effects.
Case presentation. We report a case of prolonged (111 days) B. clausii bacteraemia after brief probiotic use in a 17-month-old immunocompetent child, without a definite focus of infection and in the absence of predisposing risk factors or underlying co-morbidities. We identified seven probiotic use-associated cases of prolonged B. clausii bacteraemia (mean duration [range] 64 days [14–93 days] where data were available) in the literature, all with underlying co-morbidities.
Conclusion. B. clausii probiotic preparations may cause prolonged bacteraemia, rendering patients with underlying co-morbidities as well as those with unrecognized risk factors vulnerable for significant infectious complications.
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© 2021 The Authors