title: Lemierre's disease: a case with bilateral iliopsoas abscesses and a literature review.
abstract: Lemierre's disease is characterized by sepsis, often with an oropharyngeal source, secondary septic emboli and internal jugular vein thrombosis (Lancet 1:701-3, 1936. Clin Microbiol Rev 20(4):622-59, 2007). Septic emboli affecting many bodily sites have been reported, including the lungs, joints, bones, and brain. The case report describes an unusual case of Lemierre's disease in a 64 year old gentleman causing profound sepsis, acute kidney injury, bilateral iliopsoas abscesses and a right hand abscess. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of Lemierre's disease in the context of bilateral psoas abscesses, and highlights the ambiguity surrounding the definition of Lemierre's disease. The clinical literature review highlights the difficulty in definitively diagnosing the condition and offers some suggestions for recognising and refining the diagnostic criterion of Lemierre's.
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, University Hospital Aintree, Lower Lane, Liverpool L97AL, UK.
authors.forename: Nicholas Te
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Bird
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases, Royal Liverpool Hospital, Prescot Street, Liverpool L7 8XP, UK.
authors.forename: Derek
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cocker
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, Royal Liverpool Hospital, Prescot Street, Liverpool L7 8XP, UK.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cullis
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, Warrington Hospital, Lovely Lane, Warrington WA5 1QG, UK.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schofield
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, University Hospital Aintree, Lower Lane, Liverpool L97AL, UK.
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Challoner
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, 51 Little France Crescent Old Dalkeith Road, Edinburgh EH16 4SA, UK.
authors.forename: Alastair
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.affiliation: General Surgery, Warrington Hospital, Lovely Lane, Warrington WA5 1QG, UK.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brett
keywords: Bilateral; Fusobacterium; Fusobacterium Necrophorum; Iliopsoas abscess; Lemierre