Intracranial complications of otorhinological infections

THESES

Intracranial complications of otorhinological infections (Abstract)^*. Thesis. Aracaju, 2005

Carlos Rodolfo Tavares de Góis^**

Despite the reduction in the incidence of intracranial complications of otorhinological infections after the coming of the antimicrobial therapy, these stay as extremely serious affections.

The purpose of this report was to analyze retrospectively the intracranial complications of rhinosinusitis and otitis media in patients interned in the neurosurgical unit at Hospital Governador João Alves Filho in Aracaju - SE, between january of 1995 and september of 2004.

Thirty patients were studied, being 57% of the masculine gender and 43% feminine. With regard to the age, there was a prevalence in the first and second decades of life (83,3%). The source of infections was rhino- sinusitis in 70% of the patients and otitis media in 30%. The most commom form of complicationwas a intracranial abscess (53%), followed by subdural empyema (40%) and extradural abscess (7%). The main clinical presentations were headache (86,7%), altered consciousness (80%), fever (76,7%) and vomit (76,7%). About the location of the lesions, 66,7% of the intracranial abscesses of rhinosinoseginc origin were located in the frontal lobe, while 57,1% of those of otologic origin were located in the cerebellum. The subdural empyemas were located in convexity in 58,3% of the cases. One extradural abscess was located in the frontal lobe and another in parietaland occipital lobes.

Surgical treatment was undertaken in 23 patients, while 7 patients were treated without surgery. Seventhy percent of the patients survived and 52,4% of these presented sequelaes, being the hemiparesia the most frequent (63,6%). It is concluded that the otorhinological intracranial complications are quite serious illness, with high mortality rate and frequent sequelaes.

Key words: otorhinological infections, cerebral abscess, subdural empyema, complication.

*

Complicações intracranianas decorrentes de infecções otorrinolaringológicas. (Resumo) Tese de Mestrado, Universidade Federal de Sergipe (UFS) . (Área: Ciências da Saúde). Orientador: Carlos Umberto Pereira,

**

Address: Rua Alferes José Pedro de Brito 100 / 1002, 49032-010 Aracaju SE, Brasil.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  06 Apr 2006
• Date of issue
  Mar 2006