↓ Skip to main content

Concurrent peritonsillar abscess and poststreptococcal reactive arthritis complicating acute streptococcal tonsillitis in a young healthy adult: a case report

Overview of attention for article published in BMC Infectious Diseases, February 2015
Altmetric Badge

Mentioned by

twitter
2 X users

Citations

dimensions_citation
6 Dimensions

Readers on

mendeley
47 Mendeley
You are seeing a free-to-access but limited selection of the activity Altmetric has collected about this research output. Click here to find out more.
Title
Concurrent peritonsillar abscess and poststreptococcal reactive arthritis complicating acute streptococcal tonsillitis in a young healthy adult: a case report
Published in
BMC Infectious Diseases, February 2015
DOI 10.1186/s12879-015-0780-8
Pubmed ID
Authors

Elżbieta Mazur, Ewa Czerwińska, Aneta Grochowalska, Maria Kozioł-Montewka

Abstract

Streptococcus pyogenes is responsible for 5-15% and 20-30% of acute pharyngitis/tonsillitis in adults and children, respectively. It not only causes acute illness but also can give rise to local suppurative complications such as peritonsillar abscess as well as trigger the postinfectious syndromes of glomerulonephritis, acute rheumatic fever and poststreptococcal reactive arthritis. Here, we report a case of a young healthy adult in whom both peritonsillar abscess and poststreptococcal reactive arthritis developed as a complication of acute streptococcal tonsillitis. To the best of our knowledge, such a coincidence of poststreptococcal sequelae has not been reported previously. A 32-year-old previously healthy woman was diagnosed with acute tonsillitis by her family doctor and treated empirically with amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (875/125 mg) twice daily for 5 days. Four days after completing antibiotic therapy, peritonsillar abscess of left tonsil developed. Needle aspiration followed by incision and drainage were performed by otolaryngologist at the Emergency Department. Next, the patient was discharged home on a 10-day course of cefuroxime and metronidazole. The symptoms of peritonsillar abscess were subsiding during treatment, however on the last day of antibiotic therapy, swelling and pain of the left ankle appeared. Five days later the patient was consulted by rheumatologist. Cultures of throat swabs and abscess aspirate collected 2 weeks before revealed the presence of Streptococcus pyogenes. Antistreptolysin O (ASO) titer was evaluated and proved to be 412 IU/ml (normal 0-200 IU/ml). The level of C-reactive protein was 13,0 mg/L (normal <5,0 mg/L). There was no known cardiac involvement. Poststreptococcal reactive arthritis was diagnosed. Left ankle arthralgia persisted for about 5-6 weeks. Six months after the presentation at the Emergency Department, the patient was well, with ASO titer reaching 262 IU/ml. Clinicians should be aware that appropriate choice of antibiotic, proper dose as well as duration of therapy of acute GAS pharyngitis/tonsillitis are crucial to prevent poststreptococcal sequelae.

X Demographics

X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 2 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 47 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 47 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Master 8 17%
Student > Bachelor 7 15%
Researcher 6 13%
Student > Postgraduate 5 11%
Lecturer 2 4%
Other 7 15%
Unknown 12 26%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Medicine and Dentistry 19 40%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 4 9%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 2 4%
Nursing and Health Professions 2 4%
Unspecified 1 2%
Other 3 6%
Unknown 16 34%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 18 April 2015.
All research outputs
#18,397,250
of 22,787,797 outputs
Outputs from BMC Infectious Diseases
#5,596
of 7,671 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#256,873
of 352,559 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Infectious Diseases
#110
of 153 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 22,787,797 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 11th percentile – i.e., 11% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 7,671 research outputs from this source. They typically receive more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 9.6. This one is in the 15th percentile – i.e., 15% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 352,559 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 15th percentile – i.e., 15% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 153 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 6th percentile – i.e., 6% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.