Disparate Presentations of Retropharyngeal Abscess: An Experience From a Tertiary Care Centre

To discuss the varied presentations, diagnosis, and prompt management of retropharyngeal abscess for academic importance. A retrospective study was conducted in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery in Belagavi district of Karnataka. Six cases of varied age group with diagnosis of retropharyngeal abscess were studied during two-year period from January 2019 to January 2021. Thorough assessment of all cases was done which included symptoms at the time of presentation, clinical examination findings, imaging studies and laboratory results, medical and surgical interventions. Six patients (4 males, 2 females) were diagnosed as having Retropharyngeal abscess. Youngest age of presentation was 2 month infant. The most common symptoms at presentation included fever and odynophagia seen in all six patients. The clinical examination revealed bulge in posterior pharyngeal wall in all cases, cervical lymphadenopathy in one case, drooling of saliva in three and stridor in one patient, diffuse neck swelling in two ptatients, and trismus in two patients. Contrast Enhanced Computerized Tomographic (CECT) scanning was performed in five patients and one patient underwent Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). The abscess was surgically drained in all patients and received intravenous antibiotics after which there was significant improvement. Retropharyngeal space infection if left untreated, they carry the potential to cause life-threatening complications and death. Although with availability of broad-spectrum antibiotics, the mortality rate is low, appropriate and successful management requires a thorough understanding of the anatomy of the neck, knowledge of usual causative organisms and appropriate medical and surgical management.