Acute suppurative parotitis caused by Pseudomonas pseudomallei in children

Abstract

During a prospective clinical study of melioidosis in northeast Thailand, suppurative parotitis was observed as a characteristic presentation in children. Parotitis constituted 6.3% of all culture-positive melioidosis and 38% of melioidosis in children. Nine cases are described. None had apparent predisposition to infection, although two patients developed rising mumps virus antibody titers, suggesting a possible relation between these conditions. Complications included abscess formation (nine), spontaneous rupture into the auditory canal (five), facial nerve palsy (two), and septicemia and osteomyelitis with septic arthritis (one each). All children initially responded to surgical drainage and appropriate antibiotic therapy. Pseudomonas pseudomallei parotitis should be considered in children from endemic areas with fever and facial swelling. It has a good prognosis with appropriate treatment. It may also prove to be a sensitive clinical indicator of the presence of melioidosis within a particular geographic area.