The patient was a 44-year-old male with a past medical historysignificant for hy

The patient was a 44-year-old male with a past medical historysignificant for hypertension non-insulin-dependent-diabeteshypercholesterolemia and a history of heavy smoking (two packs perday for 15 years). He presented to the ER with chest pain and wasfound to have suffered a myocardial infarction. A cardiaccatheterization showed three-vessel coronary artery disease and heunderwent triple coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Two dayslater he develops septic shock with acute renal and respiratoryfailure. Two blood cultures were obtained. Chest radiography showeda left lower lobe infiltrate with pleural effusion. A chest tubewas placed to drain the effusion. On hospital day 11 pus was notedto be seeping from his sternal wound. A gram stain of the cultureand a blood agar culture is shown below.