Splenic abscess due to brucellosis

• Published in: Journal of Infection in Developing Countries
• Main Authors: Kamuran Sayilir, Gulsen Iskender, Mustafa Cihat Ogan, Filiz Erdil
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: The Journal of Infection in Developing Countries 2008-10-01
• Subjects: Brucellosis; splenic abscess; treatment
• Online Access: https://jidc.org/index.php/journal/article/view/204

Splenic abscess due to Brucella spp. is extremely rare. We report a case of a splenic abscess due to Brucella spp. in a 61-year-old male patient. Brucella slide and tube agglutination tests (Wright) were positive while blood culture and culture from splenic tissue yielded negative results. The abdominal ultrasonography revealed a hypoechoic intrasplenic mass 15x12 mm in diameter at the middle portion of the spleen. The splenic lesions disappeared after prolonged treatment for 7 months with a combination of doxycycline, and rifampicin, followed by TMP-SXT. Brucella spp. should be considered in the differential diagnosis of splenic abscess in countries where brucellosis is endemic. The results of this case and literature review shows that a conservative approach using optimum antibiotics alone without surgical intervention can be successful in the treatment of patients with splenic brucellosis.