Spirochetal Abscesses of the Lung

In 1921, Kline1reported three cases of spirochetal pulmonary gangrene occurring in Montefiore Hospital, and referred to seventeen other cases he was able to find reported in the literature. In 1923, he2reported four additional cases from Cleveland, making a total of twenty-four cases at that time. This case is reported as adding another to the series. His own cases were of gradual onset, the diagnosis not being made for some days; and all seven patients had severe dental caries, from which foci the spirochetes were obtained. REPORT OF CASE C. M., a man, aged 69, entered the Chicago Memorial Hospital, Sept. 3, 1923, gravely ill. June 8, while in Wisconsin on a vacation, he had a severe attack of tonsillitis, resulting in a peritonsillar abscess, which was evacuated, June 10. Three days after, this had extended to the anterior tissues of the neck, necessitating incision and drainage.