Retropharyngeal Abscess in an Adult With Pneumonia During COVID-19 Outbreak.

Wang, Tianyu; Liu, Haibin; Liang, Caiquan; Zhang, Hang; Liao, Jianchun; Liu, Huanhai

BACKGROUND Retropharyngeal abscesses are rarely reported in adults and occur mostly in patients with immunocompromised or as a foreign body complication. Admittedly, the treatment of retropharyngeal abscesses frequently involves surgical drainage to achieve the best results. However, when retropharyngeal abscesses occurred in a highly suspected patient with COVID-19, the managements and treatments should be caution to prevent the spread of the virus. CLINICAL PRESENTATION On February 13, a 40-year-old male with retropharyngeal abscesses turned to our department complaining dyspnea and dysphagia. In addition, his chest CT scan shows a suspected COVID-19 infection, thus making out Multiple Disciplinary Team determine to perform percutaneous drainage and catheterization through left anterior cervical approach under the guidance of B-ultrasound. Finally, the patient recovered and was discharged from the hospital on February 27 after 14 days of isolation. There was no recurrence after half a year follow-up. CONCLUSIONS By presenting this case, we aim at raising awareness of different surgical drainage methods and summarizing our experience in the management of retropharyngeal abscesses during the outbreak of COVID-19.