Clinical presentation and microbiology of acute salivary gland infections

Acute salivary gland infections (ASI) have been associated with poor outcome in elderly and postoperative patients. Perioperative care and treatment of co-morbidities have improved considerably, but most of our knowledge regarding ASI dates back several decades. The aim of this study was to describe the microbiology and treatment of ASI in a large post-millennial cohort. All patients with ASI admitted to the Department of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Aarhus University Hospital in the period from 2001 to 2017 were included. In total, 157 patients with ASI were included. The parotid gland (PG) was affected in 89 (57%) cases and the submandibular gland (SMG) in 68 (43%) cases. The most prevalent bacterial findings were viridans streptococci (25 isolates) and Staphylococcus aureus (19 isolates). S. aureus was almost exclusively found in PG (17/19 cases). S. aureus-positive cases showed a significantly higher inflammatory response than other bacteria (C-reactive protein, p = 0.008 and absolute neutrophil count, p = 0.0108). S. aureus is a significant pathogen in ASI and especially in PG cases. Other pathogens may play a role in the development of SMG infections. Based on the bacterial findings in this study, we recommend penicillinase-resistant penicillin as first-line treatment in ASI. none Trial registration: not relevant. The Danish Data Protection Agency approved the project.