Listeria sepsis and meningitis: A complication of renal transplantation.

Listeria infections is an important cause of sepsis and meningitis in renal transplant patients. Prompt recognition and aggressive therapy are required to control this life-threatening infection. In 1972, one case of listeriosis occurred in a renal transplant recipient in our center; 1974, six more cases were detected within a period of nine months. All seven patients had Listeria sepsis, and three of the seven patients had both sepsis and meningitis. Antibiotic treatment resulted in remarkable improvement in the clinical state of all the patients in this study. Two patients later died of other unrelated causes.