Septic pulmonary embolism induced by dental infection

Dental infection can be an important source for septic pulmonary embolism (SPE), but only a few cases of SPE accompanying dental infection have been reported. The aim of this study was to characterize the clinical features of SPE induced by dental infection. Patients who fulfilled the diagnostic criteria described in the text were recruited in a retrospective fashion. All 9 patients were men, with a median age of 59 years (range:47 to 74 years). Eight patients had chest pain (88.9%), 5 had a preceding toothache (55.6%) and 3 had preceding gingival swelling (33.3%). Blood cultures obtained from 7 patients were negative. Periodontitis was found in all of the cases, periapical periodontitis in 5 cases, and gingival abscess in 3 cases. The median duration of hospitalization was 15 days, and symptoms were mild in some cases. In addition to antimicrobial therapy, tooth extraction was performed in 3 cases, tooth scaling in 6. SPE induced by dental infection has prominent clinical characteristics such as male preponderance, chest pain, preceding toothache, and mild clinical course.