Paediatric oropharyngeal tularaemia requiring surgical intervention
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2019
Abstract
Tularaemia is a rare infectious disease endemic in most European countries caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis. 1 Patients often show acute non-specific symptoms, which causes a delay in diagnosis and proper treatment, potentially resulting in significant morbidities such as deep neck abscess, meningitis, endocarditis and septic shock. The authors present a case of a 5-year old boy with a 4-day history of fever, sore throat and painful cervical lymphadenopathy, whose clinical progression worsened despite being treated with recommended antibiotics as per WHO guidelines once the diagnosis of Tularaemia was confirmed by serologic tests. He developed a parapharyngeal abscess and a persistent left necrotic cervical lymph node, which both were surgically drained and excised, respectively, and an extended course of antibiotic was given. Subsequently, the patient fully recovered from the illness and the follow-up was negative for relapse. © BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2019. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.
Keywords
infectious diseases, otolaryngology/ent, paediatrics
Divisions
fac_med
Publication Title
BMJ Case Reports
Volume
12
Issue
9
Publisher
BMJ Publishing Group