Bezold’s abscess

Objective: Bezold’s abscess is a rare complication of mastoiditis in the antibiotics era. Deep neck abscess arising from acute otitis media is extremely rare. We report a recent case of Bezold’s abscess to underline diagnostic and therapeutical modalities.
Case report: A 26-year-old man was admitted with a 6 days history of right-sided otalgia, and gradually increasing swelling in the right upper part of the neck. Physical examination and tomodensitometry revealed lateral sinus thrombosis and cervical abscess secondary to right acute otitis media. Drainage of both deep neck abscess and mastoid was performed with a total recovery from the patient.
Conclusion: Bezold’s abscess, is rare and often subsequent to inadequately treated acute otitis media. Diagnosis may be difficult clinically but often requires medical imaging. Surgical treatment in addition to wide spectrum antibiotics are the best therapeutical approach.
Key words: mastoiditis; Bezold’s abscess; Otitis media; radiology; surgery.