Salmonella thyroid abscess in a pre-existing multinodular goitre: rare clinical entity with review of literature

Abstract

With its inherent resistance to infection, abscess of the thyroid has been rarely encountered clinically. The disease is usually preceded by an attack of upper respiratory tract infection. The availability of potent broad spectrum antibiotics is one important factor due to which currently thyroid abscess has become a rare clinical entity. But we report a case of thyroid abscess in an otherwise 26 yr old healthy young female with a long standing goitre. She gave no history of preceding URTI. The causative organism was identified as Salmonella typhi.