[Streptococcus pneumoniae septicemia. Analysis of 40 cases].

Sepsis due to Streptococcus pneumoniae has a high mortality. We report a retrospective review of 40 episodes of S pneumonia sepsis in adult patients during a two year period in a general hospital, that represented 11.3% of all sepsis observed in such hospital. Ninety two percent of infections were community acquired and in 95%, the portal of entry was the respiratory tract. Eighty five percent of patients had at least one risk factor such as alcohol abuse, unconsciousness or chronic pulmonary disease. Nine patients had suppurative complications (empyema in 4 cases, spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in 2, septic arthritis in 2 and meningitis in 1 case) and 12 (30%) died. The potential benefit of antipneumococcal vaccine as prevention should be considered in high risk subjects.