First pediatric case of Chromobacterium haemolyticum causing proctocolitis.

Bloody diarrhea in children is usually due to either infectious or inflammatory etiology, but infection is far more common than inflammatory bowel disease in children worldwide. If, however, the patient has unfavorable response to antibiotics and a definite infectious agent has yet to be identified; colonoscopy should be performed. The current patient presented with acute onset of mucous bloody diarrhea. Stool culture was initially identified as Vibrio mimicus and later identified as Aeromonas schubertii but the biochemistry did not fit well with either organism. After a prolonged course of hematochezia despite i.v. antibiotics, colonoscopy was performed that showed inflammation in the rectosigmoid area. Meanwhile, the final biochemistry tests and 16s rRNA sequencing of the organism confirmed Chromobacterium haemolyticum infection. Twelve weeks after the initial colonoscopy, repeat colonoscopy showed post-infectious colitis. Herein we report on the first pediatric case of C. haemolyticum infection causing proctocolitis.