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Case Reports: Rare disease
Actinomyces turicensis secondary to oral breast trauma as a cause of recurrent breast abscess
  1. Silas Daniel Nann1,
  2. Brielle Williams2 and
  3. Katharine Guggenheimer3
  1. 1Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
  2. 2Department of General Surgery, Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service, Southport, Queensland, Australia
  3. 3Department of General Surgery, Moruya Hospital, Moruya, New South Wales, Australia
  1. Correspondence to Dr Silas Daniel Nann; snann134{at}gmail.com

Abstract

Actinomycosis is a rare chronic infection, caused by species of the bacterium Actinomyces spp. This report proposes oral breast trauma as a cause of infection. An adult female in her 30s presented with a recurrent left breast abscess to a local hospital. She had previously undergone nine operations for abscess in the past 2 years. Shortly prior to her first presentation, a sexual partner with reported dental infection bit her periareolar area. The treating team noted that her bacterial culture from the first operation was positive for Actinomyces spp. She was treated with long-term intravenous antibiotics and had no further recurrences of infection. Oral trauma to the periareolar area by an individual with pre-existing dental disease has led to the introduction and establishment of this pathogen in the ductal system of the breast. This infection should be considered in cases of treatment resistant recurrent breast abscess.

  • Breast surgery
  • General surgery
  • Infectious diseases

https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2022-253472

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors The following authors were responsible for drafting of the text, sourcing and editing of clinical images, investigation results, drawing original diagrams and algorithms, and critical revision for important intellectual content: KG, SDN and BW. The following authors gave final approval of the manuscript: KG, SDN and BW.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Case reports provide a valuable learning resource for the scientific community and can indicate areas of interest for future research. They should not be used in isolation to guide treatment choices or public health policy.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.