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Spread of Infectious Complications of Odontogenic Abscess Detected by Technetium-99m-HMPAO-Labeled WBC Scan of Occult Sepsis in the Intensive Care Unit

Department of Nuclear Medicine, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, Republic of China

Correspondence: For reprints contact: Chia-Hung Kao, MD, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, 160 Taichung Harbor Road, Section 3, Taichung 40705, Taiwan, Republic of China.

ABSTRACT

We report a rare case of odontogenic abscess, detected while the patient was in the intensive care unit (ICU), which resulted in sepsis and the patient's death due to mediastinitis, skull osteomyelitis, and deep neck cellulitis. The detection of infectious focus in occult sepsis in ICUs is usually difficult because many diagnostic procedures cannot be conveniently performed. The use of ^99mTc-hexamethylpropyleneamineoxime-labeled white blood cells scan allowed accurate diagnosis and appropriate surgical drainage.