A case of chronic canaliculitis with isolation of actinomyces israelii, leptotrichia goodfellowii and selenomonas

A 67-year-old man presented with a two-year history of lacrimal canaliculitis. A canaliculotomy was performed with curettage of sulphur granules and irrigation with penicillin G. Organisms isolated from his canaliculus included Actinomyces israelii and two anaerobic Gram-negative bacilli, one fusiform and one curved, that could not be identified by routine biochemical methods. 16S rRNA gene sequencing identified the isolates as Leptotrichia goodfellowii and a probable Selenomonas species, respectively. These are gingival organisms not reported previously from the lacrimal system.