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Bacillus Species

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 June 2016

David J. Weber  and
William A. Rutala
David J. Weber*
Affiliation:
Division of Infectious Diseases, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, and Department of Hospital Epidemiology, North Carolina Memorial Hospital, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
William A. Rutala
Affiliation:
Division of Infectious Diseases, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, and Department of Hospital Epidemiology, North Carolina Memorial Hospital, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
*
Department of Medicine, #7030, 547 Burnett-Womack Building, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7030
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Abstract

The genus Bacillus is a diverse group of gram-positive, spore-forming aerobic bacilli. B anthracis, the agent of anthrax, is primarily an animal pathogen but is capable of causing human infection, most commonly of the skin or lungs. B cereus, a well-recognized cause of gastroenteritis, may occasionally cause epidemics in health institutions. Both B cereus and other Bacillusspecies are increasingly recognized as opportunistic pathogens in the hospitalized patient. This report is intended as a comprehensive review of the bacteriology, clinical features, and therapy of Bacillus spp infections. Nosocomial epidemics and transmission will be highlighted.

Type
Special Sections
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 9 , Issue 8 , August 1988 , pp. 368 - 373
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 1988 

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