Infect Chemother.  2011 Feb;43(1):72-75. 10.3947/ic.2011.43.1.72.

A Case of Tongue Actinomycosis

• Park SM
• Kim CH
• Kim YJ
• Kim JH
• Woo H
• Hyun IG
• Shim JW
• Lee JJ

• KMID: 2170338
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3947/ic.2011.43.1.72

Abstract

Actinomyces israelii is a normal flora of the oral cavity and gastrointestinal tract, and can cause chronic suppurative granuloma. We report here on a case of tongue actinomycosis. The patient was a 71-year old woman who had undergone surgery for rectal cancer 4 years previously. During the follow-up study using PET-CT, hypermetabolic activities were recognized at the lung hilum, mediastinum and tongue base. Bronchoscopic biopsy sample of the tongue base ulcer revealed histopathologically sulfur granule and aggregations of filamentous bacteria was diagnosed as actinomycosis of the tongue.

Keyword

Actinomycosis; Tongue

MeSH Terms

Actinomyces
Actinomycosis
Bacteria
Biopsy
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Gastrointestinal Tract
Granuloma
Humans
Lung
Mediastinum
Mouth
Rectal Neoplasms
Sulfur
Tongue
Ulcer
Sulfur

Figure

• 

  Figure 1 PET-CT reveals intense hypermetabolic activities at the tongue and thoracic lymph nodes.

• 

  Figure 2 A bronchoscopic photograph showing an ulceration of the tongue base with whitish plaques.

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  Figure 3 The bronchoscopic biopsy shows organized aggregations of filamentous bacteria forming sulfur granules (H&E stain, left: ×40, right: ×400).

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