CASE REPORT   

Otorinolaringologia 2020 March;70(1):6-10

DOI: 10.23736/S0392-6621.19.02235-5

Copyright © 2019 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Report of a rare case of Lemierre’s syndrome associated with a multidrug resistant dental abscess

Giovanni D’ERME ¹, Massimo GALLI ², Francesca R. FEDERICI ², Andrea COLIZZA ³, Massimo RALLI ³ ✉, Marco DE VINCENTIIS ²

¹ Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Umberto I Polyclinic Hospital, Rome, Italy; ² Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Sciences, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy; ³ Department of Sense Organs, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy

Lemierre’s syndrome is a rare and almost forgotten, yet potentially life-threatening, disease presenting with anaerobic germ infections of the head and neck, associated thrombophlebitis in the internal jugular vein and sprawl of metastatic infection in lungs and various other organs such as liver and brain. The main pathogenic agent is Fusobacterium necrophorum, an anaerobic gram-negative bacillus, although other infectious agents can be responsible of the condition. In this paper, we present the rare case of a patient diagnosed with Lemierre’s syndrome following a dental abscess caused by Streptococcus Intermedius, a multidrug resistant germ. General physicians, dentists and otolaryngologists should always consider, although rare, the possibility of this condition to avoid serious effects. Collaboration between general practitioners, dentists, radiologists, otolaryngologists and infectivologists is necessary to correctly diagnose and appropriately treat this condition.

KEY WORDS: Lemierre syndrome; Abscess; Thrombophlebitis; Embolism; Edema