title: Intramedullary cervical spinal cord abscess by viridans group Streptococcus secondary to infective endocarditis and facilitated by previous local radiotherapy.
abstract: The risk factors, microbial patterns, and prognosis of intramedullary abscess have varied with time. The development of an intramedullary abscess of the spinal cord (IASC) constitutes an exceptional complication of infective endocarditis (IE) in the post-antibiotic era. We present a case of cervical IASC by viridans group Streptococcus in a patient with mitral valve IE. We hypothesize that previous cervical radiotherapy for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma favoured the occurrence of this uncommon entity. This physiopathologic mechanism has not been previously reported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain. mario_fdezruiz@yahoo.es
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fernández-Ruiz
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: López-Medrano
authors.forename: María
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: García-Montero
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hornedo-Muguiro
authors.forename: Jose-María
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Aguado
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000528:radiation effects; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D020802:Epidural Abscess / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D034363:Viridans Streptococci