Affiliations: Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Children's
Hospital of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA | Division of Pediatric Critical Care, Children's
Hospital of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA | Department of Radiology, Newark Beth Israel Medical
Center, Newark, NJ, USA
Note: [] orrespondence: Jeremias L. Murillo, M.D., Division of Pediatric
Infectious Diseases, Children's Hospital of New Jersey, 201 Lyons Avenue,
Newark, 07112, NJ, USA. Tel.: +973 926 5097; Fax: +973 282 0514; E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: Non-surgical management of descending necrotizing mediastinitis
secondary to a retropharyngeal abscess is a viable management option in
children in contrast to the adult experience. We describe a pediatric case that
underwent incision and drainage of a retropharyngeal abscess but did not
require surgical drainage of a subsequent mediastinal abscess because of
excellent clinical and radiologic response to intravenous antibiotics. The
patient also had a co-existing Lemierre syndrome. Methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus was recovered from the purulent drainage of the retropharyngeal abscess.
