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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Med.
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Pathogenesis and Therapy
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1402444

Case report: Diagnosis of Lemierre's syndrome caused by root canal fillings lost using metagenomic next-generation sequencing in a 33year-old patient with metabolic syndrome

Provisionally accepted
Yimeng Zhou Yimeng Zhou Yongzhen Zhai Yongzhen Zhai *Yan Wang Yan Wang *Dan Zhang Dan Zhang *Guohe Feng Guohe Feng *
  • Department of Infectious Diseases, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Lemierre's syndrome is a rare and serious complication of pharyngitis with an estimated annual incidence of 1 in 100,000 peoples worldwide. It is characterized by septic thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein with metastatic infection, usually following oropharyngeal infection. Rare cases are reported to be caused by odontogenic infection.Case Report: A 33-year-old male came to our hospital because of fever and sore throat for 16 days. Symptoms also included pain in his left neck and shoulder. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed according to waist circumference, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia. Fusobacterium necrophorum was detected via metagenomic next-generation sequencing( mNGS). Enhanced computerized tomography showed that the left proximal jugular vein-brachiocephalic vein thrombosis. Lemierre's syndrome was diagnosed. The etiology was that the fillings in the root canal tooth lost with no blood or pain about 2 weeks before onset. The patient recovered after treatment of antibiotics and blood purification.For patients with fever, sore throat and neck pain, Lemierre's syndrome should be considered. If the loss of fillings from root canal therapy happens, especially for those with metabolic syndrome, we should be aware of the possibility of this disease. Moreover, mNGS can be used as a crucial supplementary diagnostic tool for patients with undetermined fever.

    Keywords: Lemierre's syndrome, Fusobacterium necrophorum, MNGs, metabolic syndrome, case report, Odontogenic infection

    Received: 10 May 2024; Accepted: 22 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhou, Zhai, Wang, Zhang and Feng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Yongzhen Zhai, Department of Infectious Diseases, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China
    Yan Wang, Department of Infectious Diseases, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China
    Dan Zhang, Department of Infectious Diseases, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China
    Guohe Feng, Department of Infectious Diseases, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China

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