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UK Man, 48, Bitten By Cat Contracts Excruciating Infection Caused By Previously Unknown Bacteria

A MAN was left with an excruciating infection caused by a previously unknown bacteria after he was bitten by a cat.

The obese fella, 48, rushed to an emergency department in Cambridge after his hand started to swell.

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A man from Cambridge's hand (pictured) swelled up after he was bitten by a catCredit: Emerging Infectious Diseases

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Both his forearms went red and started to swell up and his fingers became agonisingly enlargedCredit: Emerging Infectious Diseases

The feral cat bit him eight hours earlier and he had multiple cuts and teeth marks around his wrist.

Dr Nick Jones, of Cambridge University Hospitals, said: "Cats are major reservoirs of zoonotic infections. 

"Their long, sharp teeth predispose to deep-tissue bite injuries, and direct inoculation of feline saliva gives high risk for secondary infection."

The man was sent home after being given a tetanus shot and his wounds were cleaned and dressed.

But the next day he was back after both his forearms went red and started to swell up and his fingers became agonisingly enlarged.

Doctors took him under the knife to remove the damaged tissue around his wounds and gave him three types of antibiotics.

He was sent home with more medication, and thankfully he started to recover.

However, baffled medics back at the hospitals analysed his tissue to see what had caused the surprising symptoms.

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They found it was caused by a bacteria that looked similar to streptococcus, which causes infections like meningitis, strep throat, bacterial pneumonia and pink eye.

Analysis of the man's infection found it did not match any strain on record, however.

Further sequencing found it actually belonged to a family of bacteria called globicatella, but is distinct from other strains of the group by around 20 per cent.

While some types of globicatella can be resistant to several forms of antibiotics, the new strain appears to respond to some of those given to the man.

But medics said the case serves as a warning of the dangers of cat bites.

Writing in Emerging Infectious Diseases, Dr Jones said: "This report highlights the role of cats as reservoirs of as yet undiscovered bacterial species that have human pathogenic potential."

Brit Rushed For Emergency Surgery As Arm Swells Up In Mysterious New Bacterial Infection After Feral Cat Bite

7 August 2023, 12:35

A man suffered a dangerous cat bite. Picture: Emerging Infectious Diseases/Alamy

A British man has baffled doctors after developing a mysterious infection from a cat bite that made his arm swell up dramatically.

The unnamed man, whom doctors said was obese, needed emergency surgery to remove infected tissue from around the bite on his hand and arm.

The victim, 38, went to A&E after being bitten by the cat. Doctors gave him antibiotics for the painful bite, as well as a tetanus jab, and sent him on his way.

But 24 hours later, the man realised that something was still badly wrong with his hand and arm.

He went back to hospital where doctors saw that some of his fingers were seriously swollen.

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The man's swollen hand and arm. Picture: Emerging Infectious Diseases

Doctors surgically removed some of the tissue from his fingers and hand and gave him three more kinds of antibiotics.

The treatment, which took place in 2020 was a success, but doctors were baffled by the cause.

They took a swab from the infection and found it to be an unknown organism that was like the bacteria Streptococcus, which is associated with conditions like meningitis.

But the swabs suggested that the particular bacteria was a new microbe that had never previously been recorded - possibly a "distinct and previously undescribed species," as researchers put it.

The case was recorded in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases in an article by researchers from Cambridge, Imperial College and the UK Health Security Agency.

The researchers said this case highlights the role of cats as reservoirs of as yet undiscovered bacterial species that have human pathogenic potential.

Cat bites are known for being potentially dangerous. People are advised in all cases to immediately wash wounds from cat bites with soap or salt and see a doctor straight away.

UK Man Bitten By Cat Contracts Previously Unknown And 'extensive' Bacterial Infection

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A 48-year-old UK man bitten by a stray cat developed "painful" hand swelling and "extensive" infection caused by a previously unknown bacterium, a new study has revealed.

The research, published recently in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, describes the case of a 48-year-old obese man, who was admitted to the emergency department in 2020 with hand swelling, multiple puncture wounds and abrasions, about eight hours after sustaining bites from a feral cat.

Researchers, including those from Cambridge University Hospitals in the UK, discovered a novel species of the bacterium Globicatella that caused "extensive soft tissue infection" in the man bitten by the cat.

Previous research has shed light on the potential role of cats as reservoirs of yet-undiscovered pathogens and potential zoonotic infections that can jump from animals to humans as their long, sharp teeth can cause deep bite injuries.

While the man was treated for potential infection, administered a booster dose of the tetanus vaccine, given a number of oral antibiotics and discharged, he returned to the emergency department 24 hours later with an infection in his left little and right middle fingers.

Doctors then surgically removed the damaged tissue around his wounds and gave him three other antibiotics intravenously – a treatment that ultimately seemed to work and led to a recovery.

When researchers analysed the swabs from his infection in the right middle finger for microorganisms, they found an unrecognisable organism similar to Streptococcus – a bacteria linked to strep throat, pink eye and meningitis.

However, the bacterium's genome did not match any strains previously on record, indicating it was a new microbe that has never been previously documented.

Researchers then found the new bacterium belonged to a genus of gram-positive bacteria called Globicatella that differs from related strains, suggesting it is a "distinct and previously undescribed species".

Experts noted that cats have the potential to cause deep-tissue bite injuries, with the direct inoculation of their saliva posing high risk of secondary infection.

People are advised to immediately wash wounds from cat bites with soap or salt and see a doctor right away.

The new findings, according to clinicians, "highlights the role of cats as reservoirs of as yet undiscovered bacterial species that have human pathogenic potential".

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