Serratia marcescens Sepsis in a Child with Deep Venous Thrombosis – A Case Report

Introduction: Venous thromboembolism is a rare condition in paediatrics that included both deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. Serratia marcescens is a gram-negative bacterium that belongs to the Enterobacteriaceae family and tends to affect immunocompromised hosts.
Case report: We report the case of an 11-year-old boy, admitted in the Pediatric Clinic I from Emergency County Hospital Tîrgu Mureș, Romania with intense pain, swelling, cyanosis and claudication of the left foot. His personal history revealed a recent appendectomy. A close family was reported to have had a deep venous thrombosis. The laboratory tests, performed on the day of admission, revealed increased inflammatory biomarkers and D-dimer. Coagulation tests gave a low activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT). Doppler venous ultrasound and CT-exam established a diagnosis of deep venous thrombosis. Anticoagulant therapy was initiated, but on the tenth day of admission, the patient developed signs and symptoms of sepsis, and the blood culture revealed Serratia marcescens. After antibiotic and anticoagulant therapy, the patient progressed favourably. The patient was a carrier of the heterozygous form of Factor V Leiden.
Conclusions: The association between deep venous thrombosis and Serratia marcescens sepsis can compromise a condition in pediatric patients.