Cerebral abscess and calvarial osteomyelitis caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei in a renal transplant recipient

Melioidosis is an infection of humans caused by the saprophytic bacterium Burkholderia (previously Pseudomonas) pseudomallei. We present a patient of cerebral abscess and calvarial osteomyelitis caused by B. pseudomallei in a renal transplant recipient. We treated the patient with ceftazidime for 3 weeks, followed by trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) for 6 months. The superficial abscess reduced in size at the end of first month and subsided gradually. A repeat MRI showed reduction in intracranial abscess. The patient had no neurological deficit.