Bacteremia caused by VanC-type enterococci in a university hospital in Japan: a 6-year survey

We retrospectively examined the clinical and microbiological characteristics of bacteremia caused by intrinsically vancomycin-resistant (VanC-type) enterococci in a university hospital in Japan. Five cases of Enterococcus gallinarum and four of Enterococcus casseliflavus bacteremia were identified during the 6 years of the survey. Of the nine cases, five were related to neutropenic states with hematologic diseases and four were related to biliary tract infection with hepatobiliary or pancreatic diseases. VanC-type enterococci were associated with 12% of all the enterococcal bacteremias, indicating that these species cause bacteremia more frequently in Japan than in previously reported areas.