Retro pharyngeal abscess: Symptoms and Causes

retro-pharyngeal-abscess

Retro pharyngeal abscess

Last Reviewed : 12/25/2020

Retro pharyngeal abscess (RPA) is an abscess located in the tissues in the back of the throat behind the posterior pharyngeal wall (the retropharyngeal space). Because RPAs typically occur in deep tissue, they are difficult to diagnose by physical examination alone. RPA is a relatively uncommon illness, and therefore may not receive early diagnosis in children presenting with stiff neck,malaise, difficulty swallowing, or other symptoms listed below. Early diagnosis is key, while a delay in diagnosis and treatment may lead to death. Parapharyngeal space communicates with retropharyngeal space and an infection of retropharyngeal space can pass down behind the esophagus into the mediastinum. RPAs can also occur in adults of any age.

RPA can lead to airway obstruction or sepsis - both life-threatening emergencies. Fatalities normally occur from patients not receiving treatment immediately and suffocating prior to knowing that anything serious was wrong

We researched this topic for you and found the following best online resources. They are categorized into basic, advanced, and research level based on the extent of information you need. You will be taken to the respective websites by pressing on the links below.

Basic information:

http://www.healthline.com/health/retropharyngeal-abscess health line retropharyngeal abscess

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/000984.htm medline plus retropharyngeal abscess

http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/ear,-nose,-and-throat-disorders/oral-and-pharyngeal-disorders/retropharyngeal-abscess merck manuals(professional version) retropharyngeal abscess

http://www.dovemed.com/retropharyngeal-abscess/ dovemed retropharyngeal abscess

http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/retropharyngeal-abscess/overview.html new york times retropharyngeal abscess

Advanced information:

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/764421-overview medscape retropharyngeal abscess

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/995851-overview medscape pediatric retropharyngeal abscess

http://patient.info/in/doctor/retropharyngeal-abscess patient retropharyngeal abscess

https://pedclerk.bsd.uchicago.edu/page/retropharyngeal-abscesses pediatric clerckship retropharyngeal abscess

http://radiopaedia.org/articles/retropharyngeal-abscess radiopedia retropharyngeal abscess

http://www.drtbalu.co.in/ret_abs.html retropharyngeal abscess by dr. t. balasubramanian m.s. d.l.o.

http://www.frca.co.uk/documents/211%20retropharyngeal%20abscess.pdf anaesthetic management of retropharyngeal abscess in children anaesthesia tutorial of the week 211 31st january 2011

http://www.fpnotebook.com/ent/mouth/rtrphrynglabscs.htm family practice note book retropharyngeal abscess

https://online.epocrates.com/diseases/59921/retropharyngeal-abscess/definition epocrates retropharyngeal abscess

http://www.aafp.org/afp/2008/0115/p199.html peritonsillar abscess nicholas j. galioto, md, broadlawns medical center, des moines, iowa am fam physician. 2008 jan 15;77(2):199-202.

http://www.rightdiagnosis.com/r/retropharyngeal_abscess/intro.htm right diagnosis retropharyngeal abscess

Research:

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/criem/2012/943090/ sudhir b. sharma and paul hong, “ingestion and pharyngeal trauma causing secondary retropharyngeal abscess in five adult patients,” case reports in emergency medicine, vol. 2012, article id 943090, 5 pages, 2012. doi:10.1155/2012/943090

http://jmedicalcasereports.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1752-1947-5-165 fish bone foreign body presenting with an acute fulminating retropharyngeal abscess in a resource-challenged center: a case report by olushola a afolabiet al., journal of medical case reports20115:165 doi: 10.1186/1752-1947-5-165

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/criot/2013/818561/ natasha pollak and sonya wexler, “retropharyngeal calcific tendonitis mimics a retropharyngeal abscess,”case reports in otolaryngology, vol. 2013, article id 818561, 4 pages, 2013. doi:10.1155/2013/818561

http://www.arquivosdeorl.org.br/conteudo/acervo_eng.asp?id=643 henrique faria ramos1, marystella tomoe takahashi1, tatiana alves monteiro1, henry ugadin koishi2, rui imamura3.

ogah os, owolabi mo, akisanya co. cervical spine tuberculosis and retropharyngeal abscess in an adult nigerian. ann trop med public health [serial online] 2012 [cited 2016 jul 18];5:587-90. available from: http://www.atmph.org/text.asp?2012/5/6/587/109286

samanta s, samanta s, aggarwal r, soni kd. airway compromise during central venous cannulation in an undiagnosed tubercular retropharyngeal abscess: a case report. ann card anaesth [serial online] 2015 [cited 2016 jul 18];18:596-8. available from: http://www.annals.in/text.asp?2015/18/4/596/166483

http://www.jemds.com/data_pdf/2_lokesh%20v.pdf vanajakshi c. lokesh, shivakumar g, krishna k, ravi d. “anaesthetic management of a two year old child with retropharyngeal abscess”. journal of evolution of medical and dental sciences 2014; vol. 3, issue 50, october 06; page: 11838-11841, doi: 10.14260/jemds/2014/3557

ekka m, sinha s. retropharyngeal abscess as a rare presentation of pulmonary tuberculosis. lung india [serial online] 2015 [cited 2016 jul 18];32:262-4. available from: http://www.lungindia.com/text.asp?2015/32/3/262/156247

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2011/915163/ a. harkani, r. hassani, t. ziad, et al., “retropharyngeal abscess in adults: five case reports and review of the literature,” thescientificworldjournal, vol. 11, article id 915163, 7 pages, 2011. doi:10.1100/2011/915163

nazir ka, fozia pa, ul islam m, shakil a, patigaroo sa. paediatric acute retropharyngeal abscesses: an experience. afr j paediatr surg [serial online] 2013 [cited 2016 jul 18];10:327-35. available from: http://www.afrjpaedsurg.org/text.asp?2013/10/4/327/125438

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/criot/2013/912628/ nathalie gabra, manon belair, and tareck ayad, “retropharyngeal calcific tendinitis mimicking a retropharyngeal phlegmon,” case reports in otolaryngology, vol. 2013, article id 912628, 4 pages, 2013. doi:10.1155/2013/912628

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/cripe/2014/296456/ toru watanabe, “kawasaki disease with retropharyngeal edema following a blackfly bite,” case reports in pediatrics, vol. 2014, article id 296456, 3 pages, 2014. doi:10.1155/2014/296456

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=s0034-72992009000200028&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en rev. bras. otorrinolaringol. vol.75 no.2 são paulo mar./apr. 2009 http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/s0034-72992009000200028 case report: retropharyngeal abscess and stridor in infants by regina helena garcia martins et al.,

http://bmcresnotes.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1756-0500-7-291 neck swelling from a retropharyngeal abscess caused by penicillin-resistant streptococcus pneumoniae: a case report by yukiyoshi hyo et al., bmc research notes20147:291 doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-7-291

ogah os, owolabi mo, akisanya co. cervical spine tuberculosis and retropharyngeal abscess in an adult nigerian. ann trop med public health [serial online] 2012 [cited 2016 jul 22];5:587-90. available from: http://www.atmph.org/text.asp?2012/5/6/587/109286

Retro pharyngeal abscess

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