A teenager with auricular infection secondary to piercing
BMJ 2023; 380 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2022-071715 (Published 16 March 2023) Cite this as: BMJ 2023;380:e071715
- Xiaoting Cheng, otolaryngologist1 2,
- Kevin A Peng, otolaryngologist 3,
- Bing Chen, otolaryngologist 1 2,
- Yilai Shu, otolaryngologist1 2
- 1ENT Institute and Otorhinolaryngology Department of the Affiliated Eye and ENT Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- 2NHC Key Laboratory of Hearing Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- 3House Institute, Los Angeles, USA
- Correspondence to Y Shu yilai_shu{at}fudan.edu.cn
A teenage girl presented with persistent ear pain after an uneventful piercing of her right auricle to place an earring. Five days after the piercing, she noticed otalgia adjacent to the piercing, and pain in the right side of her neck. She had no other medical conditions. Before presentation she had received a course of intravenous antibiotics and had undergone incision and drainage of the affected area, but her symptoms persisted. On examination, she had a swollen, mildly fluctuant pinna (fig 1). Her temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate were normal. A complete blood count showed a white cell count of 12.63×109/L (normal range 4.0-10.0×109/L).
Right auricle, showing abundant inflammation and purulence. A drain/wick (arrow) had been placed before the …
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