Abstract

To compare the clinical and epidemiologic features, we reviewed the hospital records and interviewed 18 patients with extraintestinal infections caused by three species of halophilic vibrios. Vibrio vulnificus, the organism most frequently isolated in Virginia during the six-year study period, caused primary septicemia in three patients. Fifteen patients had soft tissue infections, most of which followed injuries that were contaminated by seawater and mostly caused by V vulnificus and V parahaemolyticus. All infections occurred during the warm months of the year, and in most cases were an occupational or recreational hazard of fishing.