A UNIQUE CASE OF LEMIERRE’S SYNDROME IN A PATIENT WITH OTITIS MEDIA

?We present the case of a 19 year male who presented initially with acute otitis media and mastoiditis that subsequently evolved into Lemierre's syndrome. The diagnosis was made 5 days after admission when the patient continued to show no clinical improvement despite IV antibiotic therapy. The only isolate was from blood cultures that grew Fusobacterium necrophorum. The patient was appropriately treated and made a full recovery from this syndrome. This case shows the importance of making the correct diagnosis and subsequentappropriate treatment to prevent the serious morbidity and mortality associated with Lemierre's syndrome. This was particularly important in this case as the antibiotic therapy for Fusobacterium necrophorum is very different to the usual treatment modalities for pharyngitis and otitis media, and if not detected early could have lead to serious and life-threatening complications for the patient.