Aspergillus sinusitis in neutropenic patients with cancer: a review

Aspergillosis typically occurs in patients with reduced host defenses; such patients include renal and marrow recipients as well as patients with chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression. Pulmonary structures are most frequently involved; non-pulmonary involvement (including sinus) has not been frequently reported. In the present study, paranasal sinusitis occurred in 52 myelosuppressed cancer patients treated over 5 years at the UMCC with chemotherapy. Twenty-one patients had Aspergillus sinusitis; Aspergillus spp., including flavus and niger, were directly recovered from sinus in 19 of the 21 infections. Two other patients were considered clinically, although not microbiologically, documented. Multiple predisposing factors for Aspergillus sinusitis during the 60 days prior to infection diagnosis appear to exist; these include: 1) granulocyte count less than 500 mm3 (mean duration, 42 days versus 14 days for sinusitis of other etiology; P less than 0.001); 2) prolonged hospitalization (mean duration, 22 days versus 14 days for patients with non-fungal sinusitis; P less than 0.001); and 3) prolonged antibiotic therapy (mean duration, 22 days versus 9 days; P less than 0.001). The Aspergillus sinusitis resolved in 18 of 21 patients following treatment with amphotericin B; however, 11 of 18 patients had infection recurrence that always developed when tumor recurred and chemotherapy was reinstituted.     

Paranasal sinusitis and sepsis in ICU patients with nasotracheal intubation

During a 1-year period 4 out of 171 nasotracheally intubated patients (2.3%) developed sepsis due to purulent sinusitis. 98 (57%) of the patients received mechanical ventilation for more than 10 days. In all cases of sinusitis the diagnosis could be confirmed by conventional X-ray examination. Sepsis resolved 1 to 3 days after initiation of a therapy protocol consisting of tracheostomy, surgical drainage and lavage. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was involved as pathogenic organism in 3 of 4 patients. We conclude that purulent sinusitis represents a serious and often occult problem in already critically ill patients with multiple potential sources of sepsis. Most important for diagnosis is a high level of suspicion particularly in patients with risk factors for infection. Prompt and successful treatment can be achieved by an aggressive surgical approach.     

Radiologic imaging in the management of sinusitis

Sinusitis is one of the most common diseases treated by primary care physicians. Uncomplicated sinusitis does not require radiologic imagery. However, when symptoms are recurrent or refractory despite adequate treatment, further diagnostic evaluations may be indicated. Plain radiography has a limited role in the management of sinusitis. Although air-fluid levels and complete opacification of a sinus are more specific for sinusitis, they are only seen in 60 percent of cases. Noncontrast coronal computed tomographic (CT) images can define the nasal anatomy much more precisely. Mucosal thickening, polyps, and other sinus abnormalities can be seen in 40 percent of symptomatic adults; however, clinical correlation is needed to avoid overdiagnosis of sinusitis because of nonspecific CT findings. Use of CT is typically reserved for difficult cases or to define anatomy prior to sinus surgery. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) cannot define bony anatomy as well as CT. MRI is only used to differentiate soft-tissue structures, such as in cases of suspected fungal infection or neoplasm. Referral will occasionally be needed in unusual or complicated cases. Immunocompromised persons and smokers are at increased risk for serious sinusitis complications.     

Occult maxillary sinusitis as a cause of fever in tetraplegia: 2 case reports

Common causes of fever in tetraplegia include urinary tract infection, respiratory complications, bacteremia, impaired autoregulation, deep vein thrombosis, osteomyelitis, drug fever, and intra-abdominal abscess. We report 2 acute tetraplegic patients who presented with fever of unknown origin. After extensive work-up, they were diagnosed with occult maxillary sinusitis. A search of current literature revealed no reports of sinusitis as a potential source of fever in recently spinal cord--injured patients. Patients with tetraplegia, especially in the acute phase of spinal cord injury, often undergo nasotracheal intubation or nasogastric tube placement, which may result in mucosal irritation and nasal congestion. All of the previously mentioned factors, in combination with poor sinus drainage related to supine position, predispose them to developing maxillary sinusitis. The 2 consecutive cases show the importance of occult sinusitis in the differential diagnosis of fever in patients with tetraplegia.     

Childhood sinusitis.

Childhood sinusitis is difficult to diagnose. It is classified on the basis of duration of inflammation--acute or chronic--and cause of inflammation--infectious or noninfectious. Infectious sinusitis is often a result of obstruction of the osteomeatal complex. Inflammation in noninfectious sinusitis is similar to the inflammatory changes detected in respiratory mucosa of patients with asthma. Acute sinusitis is primarily an infectious process similar to a prolonged infection of the upper respiratory tract. Plain radiography has limited value for the diagnosis of acute sinusitis in children. The most effective treatment of acute sinusitis is administration of a beta-lactamase-resistant antibiotic. Chronic sinusitis may be infectious, noninfectious, or both. Coronal computed tomography of the sinuses and nasal endoscopy are the preferred methods for determining the presence of chronic sinusitis. When physicians prescribe therapy for chronic sinusitis, they need to consider whether the underlying cause is infectious, noninfectious, or both. Treatment of chronic infectious sinusitis is most effective when a beta-lactamase-resistant antibiotic is administered. Chronic noninfectious sinusitis may respond to topically intranasally applied corticosteroids. If medical treatment fails to resolve the disease within 3 months, surgical intervention may be necessary. Finally, although an association between asthma and sinusitis exists, a cause-and-effect relationship has not been established.     

Pott's Puffy Tumor and Epidural Abscess Arising from Pansinusitis

Background

Sinusitis is a common disorder that can result in rare but serious complications including periorbital or orbital cellulitis, intracranial abscess or meningitis, subperiosteal scalp abscess (“Pott's puffy tumor”), osteomyelitis, and cavernous sinus thrombosis.

Case Report

We report a case of a 41-year-old man who presented to our Emergency Department with pansinusitis. He did not obtain recommended follow-up treatment after discharge and 26 days later returned with a persistence of sinusitis, Pott's puffy tumor, and an intracranial abscess caused by Streptococcus intermedius. The patient required multiple otolaryngological and neurosurgical interventions and was treated with long-term antibiotic therapy.

Conclusions

Pott's puffy tumor is a complicated infection that requires intravenous antibiotic and surgical treatment. Diagnosis is made by contrast-enhanced computed tomography scan. Early treatment significantly contributes to favorable outcome and decreases the risk of further complications such as epidural abscess.     

学龄前儿童鼻咽部菌群与上呼吸道感染和急性鼻窦炎的关系研究

目的　研究学龄前儿童鼻咽部菌群分布和影响因素并探究其与上呼吸道感染和急性鼻窦炎的关系。方法　选取 94 例学龄前儿童为研究对象,分别收集人口学信息、病史和暴露史,采集基线、四季、发生上呼吸道感染和急性鼻窦 炎时期的鼻咽部菌群样本,通过对样本细菌进行培养研究学龄前儿童鼻咽部菌群与上呼吸道感染和急性鼻窦炎的关系。 结果　学龄前儿童鼻咽部菌群分布主要以链球菌属、奈瑟菌属、嗜血杆菌属和莫拉氏菌属为主,其影响因素主要有季节 （r 2=0.137,P <0.01）、急性鼻窦炎感染史（r 2=0.070,P <0.01）、冠状病毒感染史（r2 =0.048,P <0.05）和家中有吸烟 者（r 2=0.048,P <0.05）。鼻咽部菌群数与上呼吸道感染次数呈负相关关系（F =6.579,P =0.002）,另外相较于未感染 儿童,首次感染时间间隔小于60 天的菌群数降低（P ＜ 0.001）。发生急性鼻窦炎会使鼻咽部菌群数显著减少（P ＜ 0.05）。 结论　健康学龄前儿童鼻咽部菌群与急性鼻窦炎和上呼吸道感染有关。     

An unusual presentation of sphenoid sinusitis with septicaemia in a healthy young adult

Streptococcus pneumonia and Haemophilus influenzae account for more than 50% of bacterial acute sinusitis. Isolated sphenoid sinusitis is a rare disease with potentially devastating complications such as cranial nerve involvement, brain abscess, and meningitis. It occurs at an incidence of about 2.7% of all sinus infections. There have been no previous reported cases of unilateral sphenoid sinusitis presenting as septicaemia in an otherwise healthy young immunocompetent adult.     

Moxifloxacin in the treatment of acute maxillary sinusitis after first-line treatment failure and acute sinusitis with high risk of complications

This multicentre, prospective study evaluated the efficacy and safety of 7-day oral moxifloxacin (400 mg/day) for treatment of acute maxillary sinusitis after first-line treatment failure (group 1), and acute sinusitis with high risk of complications (group 2). Two hundred and fifty-eight patients with radiologically confirmed acute sinusitis were enrolled by 52 investigators; 216 patients (83.7%) qualified for per protocol efficacy analysis (group 1, n = 175; group 2, n = 41), and 92 for bacteriological analysis. Samples were collected from the middle meatus. The clinical success rate 7-10 days post-treatment was 92.6%. Bacteriological success rates were 95.7% after 3-4 days of treatment, and 97.2% and 95.2%, in group 1 and group 2, respectively, at 7-10 days post-treatment. Drug-related adverse events, including abdominal pain (2.4%), nausea (2.4%) and diarrhoea (1.2%), were reported in 12.2% of patients. Overall, moxifloxacin therapy resulted in rapid bacteriological eradication, with a high rate of clinical success.     

Sinusitis. Its association with asthma

Sinusitis may present as an indolent infection, without the classic symptoms and signs commonly expected, and will probably be missed in children who have only cough and persistent rhinorrhea unless this diagnosis is kept in mind. Plain radiography is the most commonly used diagnostic procedure for sinusitis, but computed tomography may be more sensitive. The contribution of sinusitis to the induction and exacerbation of asthma is still unresolved. The existence of a nasobronchial reflex is not clearly supported by available data, although it is a likely explanation for the observed relationship between the two processes. However, sinusitis appears to be an important underlying trigger for some cases of asthma and, therefore, should be suspected any time that acute or chronic asthma is difficult to control.     

失效模式与效应分析护理模式在鼻窦炎合并腺样体肥大患者手术室安全管理中的应用

目的探究失效模式与效应分析(FMEA)护理模式在鼻窦炎合并腺样体肥大患者手术室安全管理中的应用。方法选取2018年3月至2020年3月我院耳鼻喉科诊治的102例鼻窦炎合并腺样体肥大患者,根据随机数表法分为观察组52例和对照组50例,对照组采用常规手术室护理,观察组在对照组基础上采用FMEA护理模式。术后观察两组风险优先指数,两组不良事件发生率、并发症。结果干预后观察组锐器损伤、手术用物清点数目不符、外科手消毒不规范、医护患沟通不足等评估风险优先指数低于干预前(P<0.05);观察组锐器损伤、手术用物清点数目不符、外科手消毒不规范、医护患沟通不足等不良事件发生率低于对照组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。两组肺部感染、口腔感染、应激性溃疡、压疮等并发症发生率比较,差异无统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论 FMEA护理模式应用于鼻窦炎合并腺样体肥大患者手术室安全管理中,可有效降低手术室护理安全隐患、不良事件和并发症发生率。     

Nonasthmatic Churg–Strauss syndrome superimposed on chronic pyelonephritis: a case report

Churg–Strauss syndrome (CSS) is a granulomatous small-vessel vasculitis. Asthma is seen in the majority of patients with CSS, but atypical nonasthmatic forms of CSS are also being recognized. We herein describe a 67-year-old woman with a history of chronic pyelonephritis and drug allergy reactions who was admitted to our hospital because of worsening renal function preceded by fever, purpura, sinusitis, and a positive urine culture that confirmed a urinary infection. She was initially treated with pipemidic acid for 7 days, followed by clarithromycin for sinusitis. Laboratory tests on admission showed an absolute eosinophil count of 1750 cells/µL and serum creatinine concentration of 4.72 mg/dL. Urine and blood cultures showed no growth. Kidney biopsy revealed crescent formations with diffuse interstitial fibrosis and foci of eosinophil infiltration. An atypical form of CSS was diagnosed based on tissue eosinophilia, peripheral eosinophilia, and sinusitis. Intravenous methylprednisolone and cyclophosphamide pulse therapy together with hemodialysis treatment improved the patient’s clinical condition but did not resolve the kidney damage. The onset of an atypical form of CSS in our patient manifested as symptoms and signs mimicking those of chronic pyelonephritis and drug allergy reactions. The patient’s chronic kidney disease finally progressed to dialysis dependence.     

Nosocomial maxillary sinusitis during mechanical ventilation: A prospective comparison of orotracheal versus the nasotracheal route for intubation

Nosocomial maxillary sinusitis during mechanical ventilation may cause life-threatening complications in ICU patients. The aim of this prospective study was to compare the incidence of maxillary sinusitis according to the route of intubation. 111 consecutive adult patients (mean age: 53, mean SAPS: 12) were randomly assigned to receive either orotracheal (n=53) or nasotracheal (n=58) intubation. All had a nasogastric feeding tube. Patients with head trauma or mechanical ventilation for less than 48h were excluded. Sinusitis diagnosis was made by radiography (waters' view) at the bedside. The two groups were similar in age, SAPS, duration of ventilation. Maxillary sinusitis occurred in 1/53 (1.8%) of the orotracheal group (on the nasogastric tube side), and in 25/58 (43.1%) of the nasotracheal group (7 on the nasogastric tube side, 11 on the endotracheal tube side, 7 bilateral;p<0.001). Nine of the 26 cases of sinusitis were initially treated by sinus drainage because of signs of infection (3 failures) and the 17 others were treated by tube removal. This procedure proved successful in 12 out of 17 cases but secondary drainage was performed in 5 cases (1 failure). Incidents related to the route for long-term intubation were significantly (p<0.001) more frequent in the orotracheal group (8/53 vs 2/58), however no patient died because of them. In this study, long-term orotracheal intubation reduced significantly the incidence of maxillary sinusitis in comparison with nasotracheal intubation.     

霉菌性副鼻窦炎的CT表现

目的探讨霉茵性副鼻窦炎的CT特征和鉴别诊断。方法回顾分析18例经手术病理证实的霉菌性副鼻窦炎的CT表现。结果单侧副鼻窦发病14例,双侧副鼻窦发病4例,病变主要在上颌窦14例,累及同侧筛窦9例、蝶窦3例、额窦3例,病变侵犯后鼻孔4例。霉茵性副鼻窦炎的CT表现主要为：病变窦腔软组织阴影充填呈铸形改变,病灶内出现点状、条状钙化灶,窦腔骨壁增厚使窭腔缩小。结论霉菌性副鼻窦炎的CT表现具有窦腔缩小,窦腔密度不均增高及点状,条状钙化等特征,CT可作出正确诊断。     

Acute sphenoid sinusitis induced blindness: a case report

Background

Acute, isolated sphenoid sinusitis is a rare but potentially devastating clinical entity. Missing this diagnosis can lead to permanent vision loss due to injury of the optic nerve. Patients may present with preseptal inflammation, lid edema, chemosis, or ophthalmoplegia.

Objective

We report a case of acute sphenoid sinusitis in a 10-year-old child who presented to the Emergency Department with essentially painless vision loss.

Case Report

Previously healthy, the patient reported progressive decrease in vision in her right eye for the 5 days prior. Other than blurred vision in the right eye, she complained of a mild frontal headache and right eye irritation the past week, which had abated. On examination, she was reading a book with her head tilted to one side. She had no photophobia, or facial or eyelid swelling. Her pupils were 5 mm bilaterally, but the right was non-reactive to light. She was unable to see two fingers 6 inches in front of her face (right eye), whereas her visual acuity on the left was 20/25. She had bilateral elevated intraocular pressures and a Marcus Gunn pupil on the right. Ophthalmology was consulted and the diagnosis of acute sphenoid sinusitis causing compression and vascular compromise to the optic nerve was diagnosed ultimately by magnetic resonance imaging. The patient was transferred to the nearest pediatric specialty hospital, where an emergent endoscopic sphenoidotomy was performed. The patient’s vision subsequently returned.

Conclusion

Sphenoid sinusitis should be considered in patients presenting with acute vision loss. Awareness, early diagnosis, and intervention help prevent permanent complications.     

Pneumonia part 2: signs, symptoms and vaccinations

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a cause of significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. There are many different serotypes of the organism which may be carried by up to 50% of children under the age of 6 years, as well as many adults. The organism is associated with both pneumonia and invasive pneumococcal disease, which may result in septicemia or meningitis. It is also a principal cause of otits media and sinusitis, which are not life-threatening, but generate a lot of discomfort, loss of schooling or working days, and around 60 000 GP consultations per year in the UK. Vaccination is a safe and effective way to prevent this infection from causing significant ill health.     

Sphenoid sinusitis, a cause of debilitating headache

We present a case of sphenoid sinusitis resulting in a debilitating headache refractory to both oral and intramuscular analgesics. Despite an aggressive evaluation in the emergency department, the correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment were delayed. Recognition of sphenoid sinusitis, the complications associated with it, and the need for aggressive management are addressed.     

STUDIES ON EXPERIMENTAL PNEUMONIA : IX. PRODUCTION IN MONKEYS OF AN ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISEASE RESEMBLING INFLUENZA BY INOCULATION WITH BACILLUS INFLUENZ?.

Twelve normal monkeys inoculated on the mucous membranes of the nose or nose and mouth with a strain of Bacillus influenzæ; originally isolated in pure culture from the pleural exudate of a case of empyema following influenzal pneumonia in man and subsequently raised in virulence by animal passage, developed an acute self-limited respiratory disease of from 3 to 5 days duration, characterized by sudden onset with profound prostration, the development of rhinitis and tracheobronchitis, with sneezing, cough, and the outpouring of a scanty mucoid, or mucopurulent exudate, a variable febrile reaction, and either a leucopenia or no significant change in the leucocyte count. This disease was complicated in five instances by purulent sinusitis of one or both antra, in three by bronchopneumonia. Bacillus influenzæ was recovered at autopsy from the lesions of the disease either in pure culture or in association with organisms that are normal inhabitants of the upper respiratory tract of monkeys. Of ten normal monkeys injected intratracheally with the same strain of Bacillus influenzæ, seven developed bronchopneumonia, two developed tracheobronchitis without pneumonia, and one resisted infection. The general symptoms and duration of the disease were similar to those of the preceding group. There were a severe cough and accelerated respirations. Bacillus influenzæ was recovered in pure culture from the lungs, bronchi, or trachea in the animals killed during the active stage of the disease. It disappeared promptly from the respiratory tract with recovery. The significance of the first series of experiments in which monkeys were inoculated in the upper respiratory tract is twofold. First, they establish the fact that Bacillus influenzæ can initiate in monkeys an acute infection of the normal mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract; that is, it can act as a primary incitant of respiratory infection without the assistance of a preceding or concomitant contributing cause. In this respect it differs radically from the pneumococcus and Streptococcus hæmolyticus, since experiments previously reported^{2, 4} have shown that neither of these organisms possesses the property of initiating an infection of the normal mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract of monkeys, even though the strains used were incalculably more virulent for monkeys than the strain of Bacillus influenzæ used in the foregoing experiments. Secondly, the experiments show that Bacillus influenzæ infection of the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract may spread by continuity to the paranasal sinuses, setting up an acute sinusitis, that it spreads readily to the lower respiratory tract, producing a tracheobronchitis and permitting the ready invasion of secondary bacteria, and that it may penetrate as far as the terminal bronchioles, alveolar ducts, atria, and alveoli, there setting up a bronchiolitis and true bronchopneumonia. In these respects it likewise differs radically from the pneumococcus and Streptococcus hæmolyticus which do not possess these pathogenic properties as previous experiments have shown.^{2, 4} The bearing of these facts on the possible etiologic relation of Bacillus influenzæ to influenza is important, since they show that Bacillus influenzæ possesses certain definite primary pathogenic properties which distinguish it and therefore separate it from the group of recognized secondary organisms in influenzal complications, of which the pneumococcus and the streptococcus are the most frequent. The possible etiologic relation of Bacillus influenzæ to influenza is further supported by the character of the respiratory disease that occurred in the monkeys. The sudden onset with profound prostration, the absence of leucocytosis or often a leucopenia, the congestion of the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, the development on the 2nd or 3rd day of an irritative cough due to an inflammatory tracheitis or tracheobronchitis, the brief self-limited course of the infection, and the irregular febrile reactions are all characteristic of influenza. Many of these symptoms were in striking contrast with the symptoms and course of pneumococcus or streptococcus infections in monkeys in which there were no prostration at onset, invariable leucocytosis, and infrequent cough developing only late in the disease. While all the above features of the disease produced in monkeys are characteristic of influenza in man, none are pathognomonic and, in fact, it is doubtful whether uncomplicated influenza possesses any pathognomonic features by which it may be diagnosed certainly in the absence of an epidemic. Even during epidemic times many respiratory infections arise which, though presumably influenza, it is impossible to diagnose as such with certainty. Nor does pathology help in this respect, since there would appear to be no established distinctive lesions of uncomplicated influenza in man, nor for that matter of the complications of influenza, apart from the complications which have been ascribed by Pfeiffer,⁵ MacCallum,⁶ Wolbach,⁷ and others to infection with Bacillus influenzæ because of the association of Bacillus influenzæ in pure culture with these complications. For these reasons, although the disease produced in monkeys appears to be essentially identical with influenza in man with respect to its clinical course and complications, it is impossible to determine certainly whether it is actually so. The experiments are advanced, therefore, as evidence in favor of the etiologic relation of Bacillus influenzæ to influenza, though they do not permit of a definite conclusion in this respect. Their bearing upon the relation of Bacillus influenzæ to certain of the complications of influenza would appear to be reasonably conclusive. The recovery of Bacillus influenzæ in pure culture at autopsy from the antra, from the trachea and bronchi, and from the lungs in some of the animals developing sinusitis, bronchiolitis, and a characteristic type of bronchopneumonia confirms by animal experiment the etiologic relation of Bacillus influenzæ to these complications of influenza, which hitherto has rested solely upon the frequent association of the influenza bacillus with these lesions in man. The production of tracheobronchitis and the same type of bronchopneumonia by the intratracheal injection of Bacillus influenzæ in the second series of experiments serves as additional confirmation of this, but has no direct bearing on the etiologic relation of Bacillus influenzæ to uncomplicated influenzæ.     

The diagnosis and management of acute and chronic sinusitis

Both acute and chronic sinusitis are common diseases associated with significant morbidity and consumption of health care dollars. Acute sinusitis is caused by an infectious process and can often be difficult to distinguish from a viral upper respiratory infection, as signs, symptoms, and even the results of most diagnostic tests overlap. In contrast, chronic sinusitis is an inflammatory disease and, contrary to common practice, long term antibiotics are likely not useful. This article reviews the diagnosis and management of both acute and chronic sinusitis and includes discussion of the prevalence of disease, our current understanding of disease pathogenesis, diagnosis, and contemporary treatment.     

真菌感染与慢性鼻窦炎合并鼻息肉的关系

目的：探讨真菌与慢性鼻窦炎鼻息肉发病的关系。方法：对2007年1月—2008年12月84例慢性鼻窦炎鼻息肉患者鼻腔分泌物进行真菌涂片和培养,与健康志愿者50人进行比较。结果：慢性鼻窦炎鼻息肉组息肉表面分泌物Gomori染色涂片的真菌检出率为67.9%（57/84）,正常组鼻黏膜分泌物涂片真菌检出率为34%（17/50）;慢性鼻窦炎鼻息肉组息肉表面分泌物真菌培养阳性率为61.9%（52/84）,正常组鼻黏膜分泌物真菌培养阳性率为48%（24/50）,2组差异有统计学意义。结论：真菌感染与慢性鼻窦炎鼻息肉的发病关系密切。