Paralysis: A Rare Presentation of Lemierre's Syndrome: A Case Report

A patient presented with acute paralysis in the setting of undiagnosed Lemierre's syndrome. Streptococcus pyogenes was the causative organism leading to internal jugular vein thrombosis, sternocleidomastoid abscess, vertebral osteomyelitis, and epidural phlegmon. The patient was treated both surgically, with abscess evacuation, hemicorpectomy, and fusion, and medically, with antibiotics and anticoagulation. Postoperatively, the patient regained upper extremity strength and lower extremity sensation, but the paraplegia remained.

Lemierre's syndrome is a rare complication of oropharyngeal infection with a constellation of findings including jugular thrombophlebitis, metastatic abscesses, and frequent involvement of anaerobic pathogens that may present acutely with paralysis.