• Wenyu He, Ye Yuan, and Jihua Huang.
• Intensive Care Unit, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Zhuhai Hospital (Jinwan Central Hospital of Zhuhai), Zhuhai, China.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2024 Aug 16; 103 (33): e39356e39356.

RationaleIliopsoas abscess is a rare acute medical condition. It usually occurs because of the spread of infection from adjacent structures and hematogenous spread. Clinical features include fever, backache, radiating nerve root pain, and leg weakness. When sepsis occurs, prompt recognition is required to initiate appropriate antimicrobial therapy and surgical drainage.Patient ConcernsA 65-year-old male presented to the outpatient department with a 2-day history of lower back, hip, and leg pain, for which analgesics were administered. During hospitalization, he experienced deterioration, becoming febrile, hypoxic, hypotensive, tachycardiac, and delirious.InterventionsThe patient was then intubated and ventilated. His family reported an additional history of acupuncture for back pain, which sustained an inflamed wound on his right forearm. Abdominal computed tomography was performed, which confirmed bilateral iliopsoas abscess without involvement of intra-abdominal organs. A preliminary report of blood culture revealed Gram-positive cocci. Echocardiography showed vegetation on the aortic valve, and moderate aortic regurgitation was sustained. He was started on vancomycin along with piperacillin-tazobactam. Ultrasound-guided percutaneous drainage was inserted into the bilateral abscess. Pus and blood yielded methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. He remained septic. The repeat computed tomography showed the right abscess enlarged. A repeated echocardiogram showed that the vegetation increased. Further incision and surgical drainage were performed with continuous wash-out.OutcomeHis condition improved after management and he was discharged to a regional hospital for ongoing care.ConclusionPrompt diagnosis and surgical treatment are essential to improve patient outcomes. The unique aspect of this case is the persistence of the methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus infection. Centralized surgical services are pivotal in conjunction with robust antimicrobial regimens.LessonThis case reinforces the importance of high clinical suspicion of an unknown source of sepsis.Copyright © 2024 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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