A 68-year-old woman presents with fever (38.9°C), malaise, and knee swelling 10 days after prosthetic knee arthroplasty. Vital signs show HR 102/min, BP 138/88 mmHg, RR 18/min, SpO2 98% on room air. Joint aspirate reveals catalase-positive, coagulase-negative gram-positive cocci in clusters; WBC 18,500/μL with left shift. She denies recent antibiotic use. Which virulence factor most likely enabled this organism's persistence on the prosthetic surface?

  1. A)Protein A binding the Fc region of IgG
  2. B)Capsular antiphagocytic protein composed of D glutamate
  3. C)M protein inhibiting complement deposition
  4. D)Polysaccharide biofilm productionGABARITO
  5. E)Heat stable enterotoxin activating guanylate cyclase

Explicação

Staphylococcus epidermidis forms polysaccharide biofilms that adhere strongly to prosthetic material and protect the organism from host defenses and antibiotics. This makes it a classic cause of device related infections. Ver explicação completa e trilha adaptativa →

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