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Case Reports
. 2022 Dec 22;14(12):e32819.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.32819. eCollection 2022 Dec.

A Tumor Treated With Antibiotics: A Rare Case

Anas Mahmoud  1 , Dawid Nowak  1 , Arslan Chaudhry  1 , Michael Agnelli  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

A Tumor Treated With Antibiotics: A Rare Case

Anas Mahmoud et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Pott's puffy tumor, a rare condition, is an osteomyelitis involving the frontal bone with accompanying subperiosteal abscess. Patients typically present with swelling of the scalp and forehead, headache, fever, tenderness of the frontal sinus, and nasal discharge. MRI is the modality of choice for diagnosis and assessment. The standard of care is incision and drainage with long-course antibiotics. The prognosis is excellent; however, complications from a hematogenous spread can lead to meningitis or epidural spaces if not treated properly.

Keywords: anaerobe; antibiotic usage; frontal sinus; gram-positive bacteria; incision and drainage of abscess; omfs; osteomyelitis; pott's puffy tumor; recurrent sinusitis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Pott's puffy tumor of the size of a softball protruding from the forehead.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Side view of Pott's puffy tumor demonstrating the protrusion of the forehead mass.
Figure 3
Figure 3. CT scan of the head showing a large, likely chronic subcutaneous collection in the midline frontal region with the erosion of adjacent frontal bone (yellow arrows) with possible communication to the left frontal sinus.
Figure 4
Figure 4. CT scan of the head showing a large, likely chronic subcutaneous collection in the midline frontal region (yellow arrow) with the erosion of adjacent frontal bone with possible communication to the left frontal sinus.
Figure 5
Figure 5. MRI of the brain showing bifrontal, maxillary, and ethmoid sinusitis. Bony erosion of the frontal calvarium extending into the bifrontal extra-axial collection. The findings are suggestive of abscess and frontal osteomyelitis with sinusitis.
Figure 6
Figure 6. Bifrontal, maxillary, and ethmoid sinusitis. Bony erosion of the frontal calvarium extending into the bifrontal extra-axial collection. The findings are suggestive of abscess and frontal osteomyelitis with sinusitis.
Figure 7
Figure 7. Resolution of the swelling one week after incision and drainage of the abscess.
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