Document Type
Article (Restricted)
Publication Date
1-1-2011
Abstract
Objective: We report a rare case of cervical necrotising fasciitis arising from poorly managed acute tonsillitis. Case report: A 23-year-old woman presented with a two-week history of fever and an eight-day history of painful neck swelling. Nine days before presentation, she had received digital manipulation of her throat by a neighbour, which had worsened her throat pain. There was associated progressive generalised neck swelling, odynophagia, dysphagia and dyspnoea. An X-ray of the neck soft tissue showed multiple gas collections. Conclusion: Cervical necrotising fasciitis is rare and usually odontogenic in origin. It is associated with a high mortality rate. Our patient responded to aggressive daily bedside wound debridements and dressings, appropriate intravenous antibiotics and high-protein nutritional support. In this way, exploration under general anaesthesia was avoided, in a developing country with limited facilities.
Keywords
Cervical, Necrotizing Fasciitis, Acute Tonsillitis, Conscious Sedation, Debridement, Necrotic Neck Wound, Pharynx disease, ENT disease, Connective tissue disease, Skin disease, Infection, Bacteriosis, Human, ENT, Wound, Sedation, Acute, Case study, Developing countries, Neck, Debridment, Treatment, Tonsillitis, Necrotizing fasciitis
Divisions
fac_med
Publication Title
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology
Volume
125
Issue
1
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
Additional Information
Salisu, A. Adeosun, A. A. Emma-Nzekwue, N. H. Abubakar, S. B.