Bacteremia Due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Children with AIDS

Six episodes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia in five children with AIDS were reviewed to characterize further the disease caused by this pathogen. Hypotension occurred in five episodes, and two children died. Bacteremia was associated most frequently with new pulmonary infiltrates and skin lesions, but additional sites of infection were also observed (the middle ear, an abdominal abscess, and the CNS). None of the children had catheter-associated infection, and only three were neutropenic. P. aeruginosa should be considered as a cause of sepsis in children with AIDS.