Propionibacterium shunt nephritis in two adolescents with medulloblastoma

The anaerobic diphtheroid Propionibacterium acnes was identified as the organism responsible for "shunt" nephritis in two adolescents with ventriculoatrial shunts inserted previously for the management of medulloblastoma. Only three cases of "shunt" nephritis secondary to infection with this common skin commensal organism are known to have been reported. The rarity of such reports may be related to the lack of good anaerobic laboratories, the length of time necessary for cultures to show growth, the poor ability of certain blood culture media to support growth of this organism, and the failure of physicians to consider Propionibacterium acnes as a true pathogen in certain clinical situations.