[Intramedullary Abscess of the Cervical Spinal Cord Caused by Advanced Periodontitis:Case Report]

Abstract

We describe the case of a 60-year-old man with an intramedullary abscess of the cervical spinal cord caused by advanced periodontitis. He suddenly developed severe neck pain and rapidly progressive palsy of the left upper arm. T2-weighted sagittal magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)revealed a hyperintense area extending from C1 to C6. Gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted MRI showed a ring-enhanced lesion at the C3-4 level that was hyperintense on diffusion-weighted MRI. The patient underwent drainage of the abscess through laminectomy. Cultures of the abscess contents revealed Fusobacterium nucleatum and Peptostreptococcus micros. Antibiotics administered to the patient to treat the infection with these anaerobic bacteria improved the neurological deficit eight weeks after surgery. The patient was also diagnosed with advanced periodontitis due to Fusobacterium nucleatum that might have caused the intramedullary abscess of the cervical spinal cord.