Painful tongue mass

Tongue Abscess: A Case Report

Introduction

Abscess of the tongue is a very rare disease that potentially compromises the airway. Acute tongue abscess symptoms include swelling or a lump in the deep tissues of the tongue, throbbing local pain, a discomfort that radiates to the ears, fever, difficulty swallowing, deliberate fixation of the tongue due to pain, and eventually, difficulties breathing.

Case

This is a 50-year-old male patient who presented with a complaint of severe tongue pain and swelling of three days duration. Associated with this, he had pain while swallowing, difficulty opening his mouth, shortness of breath, and drooling saliva. Likewise, he had a high-grade fever and a global type of headache. On physical examination, there was significant tongue swelling on the left anterolateral area, fluctuant on palpation, and had erythematous border. After informed consent was taken the patient was transferred to the operation room with the diagnosis of tongue abscess. Subsequently, incision and drainage were done under general anesthesia, and about 30mL of thick pus was drained. The pocket was washed with normal saline and 2% hydrogen peroxide. The patient was transferred to the surgical ward with stable vital signs and had been on antibiotics. He was discharged after two days of hospital stay.

Conclusion

Abscesses in the tongue are quite uncommon due to its rich vascular supply, lymphatic drainage, and saliva's immunologic advantage. Thorough diagnosis and successful treatment of tongue abscess prevent potential airway compromise. Antibiotic treatment should cover gram-positive and gram-negative anaerobes.

Temporal arteritis: report of a case

Temporal arteritis is a rheumatic disease that affects large and medium-sized arteries. It is a severe arteritis involving both the intima and media of the vessel and is a cause of headache that is frequently diagnosed erroneously as "atypical migraine." The patients have a burning or throbbing type of pain. Ultimately, there is localized inflammation or cellulitis over the swollen, tortuous artery. Jaw claudication, eye pain, photophobia, diplopia, and even blindness may accompany the temporal symptoms. As many as 20% to 60% of inadequately treated or untreated patients will lose their vision. Blindness may or may not be preceded by visual symptoms and funduscopic changes. A variety of systemic symptoms are also often present, including nausea, vomiting, chills, dizziness, and loss of weight. Temporal arteritis is not a common diagnosis in maxillofacial practice. We are presenting a case of temporal arteritis diagnosed after a biopsy. The patient eventually lost the vision from one eye.

Acute enlargement of the tongue

Acute enlargement of the tongue can present as an emergency. The problems of management in the acute situation and the diagnosis of the underlying condition are discussed and illustrated with reference to four unusual cases. There is a case for a simple classification and such a classification is presented.

Necrosis of the tongue in a patient with intestinal infarction

A patient with a rare combination of bilateral lingual necrosis and intestinal infarction, caused by giant cell arteritis, is described and the literature reviewed.