Article
Immunology
Aaron Keene, Julie Creighton, Trevor Anderson, Tony Walls
Summary: Kingella kingae infections usually respond well to beta-lactam antibiotics, but we reported a case of treatment failure with high-dose intravenous flucloxacillin in a 3-year-old patient. Despite phenotypic testing and whole-genome sequencing, the mechanism of flucloxacillin resistance remains unknown.
PEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASE JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Pablo Yagupsky
Summary: Kingella kingae colonization and carriage play a crucial role in the person-to-person transmission of the bacterium and the pathogenesis of invasive infections.
Article
Microbiology
Romain Basmaci, Philippe Bidet, Stephane Bonacorsi
Summary: This narrative review explores the association between Kingella kingae (K. kingae) and viral infections. Symptoms of viral infections often occur concurrently with K. kingae infection, and specific viral syndromes have been described in children with K. kingae infection. Human rhinovirus and coxsackievirus, which belong to the Picornaviridae family, have been frequently identified in patients with K. kingae infection and are known to facilitate bacterial infections. However, the exact role of viral infection in the pathophysiology of K. kingae remains unclear and requires further molecular studies.
Article
Microbiology
Omer Murik, David A. A. Zeevi, Tzvia Mann, Livnat Kashat, Marc V. V. Assous, Orli Megged, Pablo Yagupsky
Summary: Sensitive nucleic acid amplification tests have led to the recognition of Kingella kingae as a common pathogen causing various medical conditions in early childhood. The genomic determinants associated with different clinical outcomes are yet to be identified.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Ayelen Ivana Pesce Viglietti, Franco Agustin Sviercz, Cinthya Alicia Marcela Lopez, Rosa Nicole Freiberger, Jorge Quarleri, Maria Victoria Delpino
Summary: Kingella kingae is an emerging pathogen that causes septic arthritis, osteomyelitis, and bacteremia in children aged 6 to 48 months. Infection with K. kingae directly stimulates osteoclastogenesis and indirectly through a potent pro-inflammatory response that drives macrophages to become functional osteoclasts. Additionally, the osteoclastogenic capability of K. kingae is counteracted by their outer membrane vesicles in a concentration-dependent manner.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Pediatrics
Eric A. Porsch, Kevin A. Hernandez, Daniel P. Morreale, Nina R. Montoya, Taylor A. Yount, Joseph W. St. W. Geme III
Summary: Kingella kingae is an emerging pediatric pathogen known to cause septic arthritis, osteomyelitis, bacteremia, and occasionally endocarditis in young children. The pathogenesis of K. kingae disease involves colonization of the upper respiratory tract, breach of the respiratory epithelial barrier, and hematogenous spread to joints, bones, and endocardium. Surface factors of K. kingae, such as type IV pili, Knh trimeric autotransporter, and surface polysaccharides, play important roles in the pathogenic process of the disease.
FRONTIERS IN PEDIATRICS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Giacomo DeMarco, Moez Chargui, Benoit Coulin, Benoit Borner, Christina Steiger, Romain Dayer, Dimitri Ceroni
Summary: K. kingae is considered the main bacterial cause of osteoarticular infections in children under 48 months, presenting with mild symptoms and moderate inflammatory response. Surgical intervention is often not necessary, as the infections respond well to short antibiotic treatments.
Article
Orthopedics
B. Coulin, G. Demarco, V Spyropoulou, C. Juchler, T. Vendeuvre, C. Habre, A. Tabard-Fougere, R. Dayer, C. Steiger, D. Ceroni
Summary: K. kingae should be recognized as the primary pathogen causing OAI in children younger than 48 months old. Diagnosis of an OAI caused by K. kingae is not always obvious, as this infection may occur with a mild-to-moderate clinical and biological inflammatory response. The use of nucleic acid amplification assays has improved pathogen detection and increased the observed incidence of OAIs, especially in children aged 6-48 months.
BONE & JOINT JOURNAL
(2021)
Review
Microbiology
Eric A. Porsch
Summary: In the past three decades, Kingella kingae has emerged as an important pathogen of pediatric osteoarticular infections, leading to significant research efforts to understand its pathogenicity. The identification of multiple virulence factors has provided potential targets for therapeutic intervention and vaccine antigens.
Article
Pediatrics
Eleftheria Samara, Nicolas Lutz, Pierre-Yves Zambelli
Summary: Kingella kingae is an important cause of primary spinal infections in children, requiring MRI and nucleic acid amplification tests for diagnosis. Most patients respond well to antibiotic treatment, with a benign clinical course and no permanent sequelae.
Review
Pediatrics
Pablo Yagupsky
Summary: Kingella kingae infections in children primarily occur in those aged 6-48 months, commonly found in the oropharynx, presenting with diverse symptoms and requiring a high clinical suspicion index. Carriage is frequently detected in day care centers, facilitating transmission and disease outbreaks that warrant vigilance.
Article
Immunology
Madalena Almeida Borges, Sara Silva, Raquel Ferreira, Catarina Martins, Paulo Paixao, Vitoria Rodrigues, Joao Farela Neves
Summary: Kingella kingae is a common cause of osteoarticular infections in young children aged between 6 and 48 months, as well as pediatric bacteremia and endocarditis, but meningitis is rarely associated with it.
PEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASE JOURNAL
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Jocelyn Gravel, Sergio Manzano, Marie-Lyne Nault, Emilie Vallieres, Fabien Rallu, Christian Renaud
Summary: The study found no association between oropharyngeal carriage of Kingella kingae and transient synovitis of the hip in preschool children. However, there was a higher carriage rate of Kingella kingae in children with osteoarticular infections.
PEDIATRIC INFECTIOUS DISEASE JOURNAL
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Benoit Coulin, Giacomo DeMarco, Oscar Vazquez, Vasiliki Spyropoulou, Nathaly Gavira, Tanguy Vendeuvre, Anne Tabard-Fougere, Romain Dayer, Christina Steiger, Dimitri Ceroni
Summary: Osteoarticular infections in children require prompt diagnosis. A retrospective study was conducted on 335 children, and age, temperature, inflammatory markers were found to be valuable in discriminating between Kingella kingae and Staphylococcus aureus infections. Age, CRP concentration, temperature, and platelet count were the best predictors for K. kingae infections.
Article
Microbiology
Katerina Filipi, Waheed Ur Rahman, Adriana Osickova, Radim Osicka
Summary: Kingella kingae is a Gram-negative bacterium that is part of the normal flora in the throat of young children. It has recently been recognized as an emerging pathogen that causes skeletal system infections, bacteremia, and severe infective endocarditis. The bacterium secretes an RtxA cytotoxin, which belongs to a growing family of cytolytic toxins secreted by Gram-negative pathogens and is involved in the development of clinical infection.
