Prolonged Meningococcal Septicemia: A Report of Four Cases and a Comparison with Benign Gonococcal Septicemia

Abstract

Four cases of prolonged meningococcal septicemia are described. The febrile period varied between 1 and 3 weeks. Skin lesions, joint and muscle pains, and unaffected general condition were prominent clinical features. Prolonged meningococcal septicemia may be differentiated from the so-called benign gonococcemia by the following features: catarrhal symptoms from the upper respiratory tract are common; the skin eruptions are more numerous; the characteristic lesion is a maculopapule, often with a hemorrhagic centre, whereas vesiculopustules, typical of gonococcemia, are rare; hands and feet are not predilection sites.