PRACTICA OTO-RHINO-LARYNGOLOGICA
Vol. 100 No. 6 June 2007
A Case of Thrombophlebitis of the Internal
Jugular Vein after Peritonsillar Abscesses
Keiichi
Izuhara, Masami Onishi, Takeo Nonoda and Toshimitsu Ohashi
(Ogaki Municipal Hospital)
Thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein caused by head and neck infection has become a rare disorder due to the development of antibiotics. We treated a patient with thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein considered to have been caused by peritonsillar abscess. The patient was a 33-year-old male who consulted us due to swelling and severe pain of the neck after remission of peritonsillar abscesses. CT and ultrasonography were useful for the diagnosis. This patient was successfully treated by antibiotics and fluid infusion, but concomitant anticoagulant therapy might have also been an appropriate strategy. This case suggests the need to consider thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein in patients complaining of swelling and pain in the neck after head and neck infection.
Key words : thrombophlebitis, internal jugular vein, peritonsillar abscess, anticoagulation