A 26-year-old woman presents with diarrhea containing both blood and pus. The lab cultures on a special medium incubated at 42°C under microaerophilic conditions grow a Gram-negative spiral-shaped organism that is isolated. What is the most likely genus?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Both Campylobacter and Helicobacter are spiral-shaped microaerophiles requiring a special medium but only Campylobacter grows at 42°C. Salmonella and Shigella are facultative anaerobes, so they would grow microaerophilically, but neither will grow at 42°C. Vibrio is comma shaped and requires an alkaline medium and 35°C to 37°C for good growth.

A 26-Year-Old Woman Presents with Diarrhea Containing Both Blood and Pus