title: [Spontaneous brain abscess--bacteriology, therapy and prognosis].
abstract: Spontaneous intracranial abscesses are quite rare in western industrial countries. According to the recently published papers, each neurosurgical centre is expecting 2 to 4 cases a year. Whereas in the last three years we only operated on one or two cases a year we treated 8 cases in the first ten months of 1994. Although this remarkable increase is not statistically significant, further observations seem to be indicated. In 5 cases the origin of the abscess remained unknown. 3 patients had odontogeneous focuses, 2 middle ear and 2 pulmonary infections. One patient was operated on for spontaneous liver abscess few days before. Streptococcus was found in 9 cases, Bacteroides, Nocardia and Rhodoturola in 1 case each. For one patient no pathogen could be detected. In regard of our results, minimal invasive neurosurgical aspiration of the abscess with adjacent longterm antibiotic therapy gives a good prognosis with little morbidity. In contrast the mortality rate rises if diagnostic procedures are delayed or if the detected microorganism is highly resistant to current antibiotics.
authors.affiliation: Universität Ulm, Klinik für Neurochirurgie, Günzburg.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Richter
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001419:Bacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D001922:Brain Abscess / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate
vernacular_title: Spontane Hirnabszesse--Bakteriologie, Therapie und Prognose.