Kingella kingae infections in children--United States, June 2001-November 2002.

Kingella kingae is recognized increasingly as a cause of skeletal infections in children. Recent studies indicate that direct inoculation of clinical specimens into aerobic blood culture bottles (ABCBs), instead of direct plating of specimens on solid media, might improve recovery of the fastidious bacteria. Prompted by a report of a possible cluster of osteoarticular infections caused by K. kingae among children, the Infectious Diseases Society of America Emerging Infections Network (IDSA-EIN) surveyed pediatric infectious disease consultants (PIDCs) about their experiences in diagnosing K. kingae and other skeletal infections in children. This report summarizes the findings of that survey, which identified 23 K. kingae pediatric cases and indicated that 35% of responding PIDCs did not use ABCBs in diagnosing skeletal infections. Efforts to increase use of ABCBs among clinicians and laboratorians might lead to increased detection of K. kingae cases.