[Invasive Streptococcal infections - an interdisciplinary challenge].

HISTORY AND CLINICAL FINDINGS: We report on a 34-year-old female patient and a 50-year-old male patient, both of whom were admitted to our emergency department with severe septic conditions.

MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS: Both patients were resuscitated and exhibited clinical as well as laboratory evidence of a severe bacterial infection.

DIAGNOSIS: Both patients had an invasive infection with Group A Streptococcus. The female patient had a Streptococcal sepsis with severe pneumonia, while the male patient had a Streptococcus-induced necrotizing fasciitis of the upper extremity.

THERAPY AND COURSE: While the female patient unfortunately died in the emergency department`s resuscitation room despite all intensive medical treatments, the male patient survived after prompt surgical therapy and an extended stay in the intensive care unit.

CONCLUSION

Patients with invasive infections caused by Group A Streptococcus can deteriorate rapidly clinically. Prompt diagnosis and initiation of often interdisciplinary treatment are important. Nevertheless, these conditions can be fatal.