Lung Abscess and Pleural Empyema due to Lawsonella clevelandensis - A first report

This case study describes the first recorded incidence of Lawsonella clevelandensis causing a lung abscess and pleural empyema in a 66-year-old patient with significant health complications. Despite initial negative cultures, the pathogen was eventually identified using broad-range PCR and confirmed by successful whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of the cultivated bacterium. This highlighted the organism's role as a potential respiratory pathogen and the necessity for advanced diagnostic techniques to detect unusual pathogens in complex clinical scenarios.