Tubercular Retropharyngeal Abscess in Association with Aberrant Retropharyngeal Internal Carotid Arteries - A Rare Entity: Imaging Diagnosis and a Word of Caution

Özet

Retropharyngeal (RP) abscess is rarely encounteredin adults. Still rare is an abscess of tubercular etiology especially without involvement of the underlyingcervical spine. We present a case of an immunocompetent woman with a tubercular RP abscess diagnosedon contrast-enhanced cervical computed tomographyand confirmed on cytology. Another interesting feature was an aberrant RP course of the internal carotidarteries in this patient. This case report stresses theimportance of imaging in establishing an unexpected diagnosis of an RP abscess, suggesting its likelycause, and also in demonstrating the aberration inregional vascular anatomy, and warns the clinicianof life-threatening hemorrhagic complication in theevent of any diagnostic or therapeutic intervention.