{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,14]],"date-time":"2026-05-14T16:13:08Z","timestamp":1778775188712,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":19,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,30]],"date-time":"2025-06-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1751241600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Microorganisms"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Nocardia spp. is an environmental Gram-positive bacterium able to cause infections in humans, predominantly of an opportunistic nature. Nocardial brain abscesses are rare and result from dissemination from another primary lesion, mainly observed in immunocompromised hosts. The diagnosis of nocardiosis relies on direct examination and bacterial culture, but antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) remains controversial due to technical challenges, limited standardization, and a paucity of studies correlating in vitro susceptibility with clinical efficacy. Management is challenging and usually based on expert opinion, as robust evidence is limited. In this case report, we describe an immunocompromised patient with a Nocardia farcinica brain abscess who achieved clinical resolution following combination therapy that included ceftriaxone, despite in vitro resistance, illustrating the complexities in interpreting AST and guiding treatment decisions in rare infections.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms13071536","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,30]],"date-time":"2025-06-30T10:03:48Z","timestamp":1751277828000},"page":"1536","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Successful Treatment of Brain Abscess Caused by Nocardia farcinica with Combination Therapy Despite Discrepancies in In Vitro Results: A Case Report and Review of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Challenges"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-0792-3346","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eva","family":"Larra\u00f1aga Lapique","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Departement Clinic of Infectious Diseases, H\u00f4pital Universitaire de Bruxelles (HUB)-Erasme, 1070 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Salom\u00e9","family":"Gallemaers","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Laboratoire Hospitalier Universitaire de Bruxelles-Universitaire Laboratorium Brussel (LHUB-ULB), Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), 1000 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-8383-6503","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sophie","family":"Schuind","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neurosurgery, H\u00f4pital Universitaire de Bruxelles (HUB)-Erasme, 1070 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Chiara","family":"Mabiglia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Radiology, H\u00f4pital Universitaire de Bruxelles (HUB)-Erasme, 1070 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1706-6869","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nicolas","family":"Yin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Laboratoire Hospitalier Universitaire de Bruxelles-Universitaire Laboratorium Brussel (LHUB-ULB), Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), 1000 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9307-7418","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Delphine","family":"Martiny","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Laboratoire Hospitalier Universitaire de Bruxelles-Universitaire Laboratorium Brussel (LHUB-ULB), Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), 1000 Brussels, Belgium"},{"name":"Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Mons (UMONS), 7000 Mons, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maya","family":"Hites","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departement Clinic of Infectious Diseases, H\u00f4pital Universitaire de Bruxelles (HUB)-Erasme, 1070 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"545","DOI":"10.1097\/QCO.0000000000000404","article-title":"Nocardia infections in solid organ and hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients","volume":"30","author":"Coussement","year":"2017","journal-title":"Curr. 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