INTRODUCTION A retropharyngeal abscess is a potentially life-threatening infection in the deep space of the neck, which can compromise the airway. Its management requires highly specialized care, including surgery and intensive care, to reduce mortality. This is the first case of a gas-forming abscess reported from this region, but not the first such report in the literature. CASE PRESENTATIO...

A rare case of descending necrotizing mediastinitis (DNM) secondary to a nontraumatic retropharyngeal abscess is reported. Even in the era of antibiotics, the mortality of DNM is still around 40%. In spite of drainage of a localized neck abscess, and the administration of systemic antibiotics, the retropharyngeal abscess extended to the pericardial and pleural cavities. Several drainage procedu...

The majority of retropharyngeal hematomas described in the literature have been associated with anticoagulation therapy, tumors, aneurysm, infection or cervical spine injury. We present a case of a 55-year-old African American female with acute chest pain, sore throat, and dysphagia. Her past medical history was significant for uncontrolled hypertension and cervical spine arthritis. Physical ex...

Acute calcific prevertebral tendinitis, which is also known as retropharyngeal calcific tendinitis and longus colli tendinitis, is an under-recognized cause of acute cervical pain produced by an inflammation of the longus colli muscle. The typical characteristics of this entity are calcifications at the superior insertion of the longus colli tendons at the C1-C2 level and fluid collection in th...

Retropharyngeal abscesses are rare in adults. They occur mostly in immunocompromised patients or as a foreign body complication. We report 5 cases of retropharyngeal abscess collected in the ENT Department of CHU Mohammed VI of Marrakech, during a two-year period (December 2008 to December 2009). Local trauma by foreign body ingestion was the aetiology in four patients. The presenting symptoms,...

An unimmunized 19-month-old child presented with a retropharyngeal abscess and coincident varicella infection. The abscess resolved with operative drainage. This is the first published report of this connection, although varicella is known to be associated with abscesses in general. Practitioners should be aware that cervical abscesses may complicate varicella infections.

A 37 year old female who presented with a history of foreign body ingestion ten months previously was found on examination to have a retropharyngeal swelling. An initial differential of foreign body granuloma or retropharyngeal tuberculous abscess was considered. The usefulness of the lateral neck radiograph in demonstrating retropharyngeal pathology and the supplementary role of the computed t...