Fusobacterium necrophorum-induced orbital cellulitis with intracranial involvement: a case report and review of the literature

ABSTRACT

We report a case of a 17-year-old female who presented with orbital cellulitis and meningeal involvement secondary to severe paranasal sinusitis with positive blood culture for Fusobacterium necrophorum. The patient recovered after a 2-month course of systemic antibiotics and functional endoscopic sinus surgery.Fusobacterium necrophorum-induced orbital cellulitis is a rare entity, with only 5 previous cases reported in the literature, which are reviewed here as well. This review reveals that Fusobacterium necrophorum is an aggressive pathogen in orbital cellulitis and therefore we suggest that affected patients may require a correspondingly aggressive medical management. Furthermore, we advise additional workup to rule out Lemierre’s syndrome, a severe complication of Fusobacterium necrophorum infection, including transthoracic echocardiogram, chest radiograph, upper extremities’ venous duplex and magnetic resonance venography.

KEYWORDS:

• Fusobacterium necrophorum
• Lemierre’s syndrome
• orbital cellulitis
• postanginal septicemia

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.