Gardnerella vaginalis as a cause of septicemia and bacteremia: A systematic review

Gardnerella vaginalis is a facultative anaerobic gram-negative bacterium that can be sexually transmitted and usually causes genital infections such as vaginitis. This microorganism is an opportunistic pathogen and in addition to genital infections, it can also cause invasive infections. We searched various English articles published between January 1980 and October 2021 in the database Medline, EMBASE, Web of Science, Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Research Gate. Data were extracted based on the characteristics and quality of the study. We studied 20 case report articles of bacteremia and sepsis caused by Gardnerella vaginalis from different parts of the body. Cases included men and women with different clinical conditions in different age groups. This factor may not be considered because the microbiological diagnosis of Gardnerella vaginalis is difficult and is not detected by routine culture media. Most of the cases reported in these articles were treatable. In conclusion, physicians should consider the association of this bacterium with invasive infections such as bacteremia and sepsis. The use of specific culture media and new microbiological methods can quickly identify this microorganism and show its role in invasive and systemic infections more clearly.