Breast Abscess Treated With the Kampo Medicine Hainosankyuto: A Pediatric Case Report

Abstract

A 13-year-old female presented with redness and swelling of the left breast noted for a period of 1 week. On the basis of magnetic resonance imaging findings, she was diagnosed as having an abscess in the left breast. We performed percutaneous aspiration of the abscess, and started treatment with antibiotics and the Kampo medicine Hainosankyuto. On the basis of direct smear examination results, the finding of Gram-positive cocci 3+, and medical history, we selected vancomycin for the presumptive therapy. The abscess disintegrated upon Hainosankyuto use for 4 days after hospital admission. Microbiological analyses enabled the identification of methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and its antibiotic sensitivity led to the selection of cefazolin for the definitive therapy. We stopped the antibiotic therapy on day 10, and she was discharged from the hospital on day 11. We stopped Hainosankyuto treatment 7 days after discharge from the hospital, and the wound area had epithelized almost completely by day 18. Hainosankyuto is effective against suppurative diseases of the skin and mucosa, and also relieves pain. The disintegration of the abscess was a very specific effect of Hainosankyuto. In our patient, Hainosankyuto treatment was effective against breast abscess and was minimally invasive.