Streptococcus suis infection as a cause of severe illness: 2 cases from Croatia.

Streptococcus suis is a zoonotic agent that can be spread to humans, e.g. butchers, abattoir workers and farmers, by contact with pigs. Human infection is most frequently manifested as purulent meningitis, in combination with deafness and ataxia, but there have been rare reports of septic shock leading to multiorgan failure and death. We report 2 patients with S. suis type 1 infection. One patient suffered an abrupt and severe illness, with septic shock leading to multiorgan failure and death, whereas the other presented with purulent meningitis and deafness. Both patients were immunocompromised. They were most likely infected as a result of handling pork at home. In both cases, the infection was due to S. suis type 1, in contrast to previous reports indicating an association between human infection and S. suis type 2. Epidemiologic surveys of human infection may be of interest, especially among individuals exposed to pigs and pork.