Complications of sinusitis caused by Streptococcus milleri

Abstract

Streptococci are commonly classified according to the type of hemolysis produced on blood agar (.alpha.-, .beta.-, or lack of hemolysis), the presence of Lancefield Group antigens and the atmospheric requirements for growth (aerobic, microaerophilic, CO2-dependent, or anaerobic). The pathogenicity of the large colony .beta.-hemolytic streptococci of certain Lancefield Groups, notably Group A, has long been recognized in infections of the ear, nose and throat. Anaerobic streptococci are recognized as a component of mixed anaerobic infections causing sinusitis (Frederick et Braude, 1974). Less well-known as pathogens are a miscellaneous group which are conveniently termed viridans streptococci. A series of 5 cases of severe complicated paranasal sinusitis caused by a viridans streptococcus, namely S. milleri, were treated at the Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford [UK] over the past 18 mo.