Soft Tissue Neck Abscess

Soft tissue neck abscess occur in the spaces between the structures of the neck. An abscess is a collection of puss. The location of the abscess is how the name of the abscess is determined. They can be found behind the pharynx, beside the tonsils, and below the tongue. There are a variety of ways to diagnose, including blood tests, throat culture, biopsy, x-ray, and CT scans. The cause is due to infection, either bacterial or viral, in the area of the head and neck. The infection can spread, causing a pocket of infection to form and puss to grow. Symptoms of an abscess are fever, chills, body aches, swelling in the tongue and/or throat, difficulty swallowing, and difficulty breathing. Treatment depends on the location and cause but can be either antibiotic treatment or drainage of the abscess. A CT axial image of a retropharyngeal (located behind the pharynx) abscess is shown.