Descriptive Study on Influence of Systemic Conditions on Head and Neck Infections

Aim: The aim of the present research was to conduct a descriptive study about the role of systemic conditions, other than diabetes, in the occurrence and evolution of neck and head suppurations. Material and Method: For this purpose, we selected the sick people hospitalized in the Ist Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of Cluj-Napoca who presented suppurations of the head and neck and chronic systemic conditions. Results: One hundred and thirteen patients accomplished the inclusion criteria. The most frequent systemic conditions identified at patients with head and neck suppurations were the cardio-vascular diseases (48%), followed by hepatic diseases (19%). Head and neck suppurations proved to affect only one cavity in 75.22% of cases. The septic metastasis process was present in case of 3 patients, the mediastine being the most frequently affected organ by the presence of the septic process. The post-surgical evolution was favorable in case of 112 patients, the only death being noticed in the case of a woman suffering from decompensated leukemia. The mean of hospitalization days proved to be statistically significant higher when patients presented more than one affected cavity compared to patients with one affected cavity (p = 0.0030). Conclusion: Immuno-depressing systemic conditions may influence in an unfavourable way the evolution of head and neck suppurations. The surgical treatment has been proved to be efficient in curing the suppurations of the patients suffering from diverse chronic systemic conditions. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]