Pott's Puffy Tumor Presenting as Pyogenic Meningitis in an Infant

Abstract

Introduction. Pott's puffy tumor is characterized by the osteomyelitis of the frontal bone with underlying subperiosteal abscess, mostly occurring secondary to recurrent sinusitis or head trauma. Though it is a rare clinical entity in this antibiotic era, its occurrence mostly in the adolescent age group has now shown increased reporting lately in all age groups. Case Description. We describe here a case of a 4½-month-old female baby who presented to our hospital's Emergency Room with clinical features of pyogenic meningitis following aspiration of a midline frontal swelling. The infant presented with high-grade fever, 3-4 episodes of projectile vomiting, increased irritability, and refusal to breastfeeding than usual. This was accompanied by a history of a gradually increasing midline fluctuant erythematous swelling on her forehead extending to the left eye. Aspiration of the swelling was done a day before by a local general practitioner, following which she developed the above-mentioned features of pyogenic meningitis and was brought to the hospital the next day. Examination revealed a conscious, febrile, irritable child with bulging anterior fontanel and 101.4°F axillary temperature. Vital signs were within normal limits. CSF analysis was suggestive of pyogenic meningitis, and appropriate antibiotics were given. MRI showed frontal bone osteomyelitis with erosion of the bony plate and focal cerebritis. The condition turned out to be Pott's puffy tumor with pyogenic meningitis after detailed investigations. The infant was treated with appropriate antibiotics and other supportive therapeutic measures and discharged with the advice for further management in collaboration with otorhinolaryngologist.