抄録
Retropharyngeal abscess was a fetal disease before the development of antibiotics, but today we rerely encounter severe cases. This report is just such a rare case. A 49-year-old Japanese man was admitted to our hospital because of sepsis due to retropharyngeal abscess. Computed tomographic scans demonstrated thrombosis extending into the right transverse sinus from the right jugular vein. The next day angiography revealed an aneurysm of the right internal carotid artery at the same level as the jugular vein thrombosis. Invasion of the bacterial infection from the retropharyngeal abscess into the internal carotid artery and jugular vein caused an aneurysm on thrombosis and one side on the other. The reason why these different lesions developed is the difference between the structure of arterial walls and venous walls. Generally speaking, arteries have thicker walls, and are exposed to higher pressure and faster blood flow than veins. Thus, when the bacterial infection invaded the vessels, an aneurysm developed in the artery and thrombosis developed in the vein.
