Identifying the Microorganisms Responsible for Acute Head and Neck Infections.

Acute head and neck infections cause significant pain and discomfort for patients and impact on their quality of life. Effective antibiotic and surgical treatments have been developed for these infections but they are still able to develop into life-threatening diseases such as meningitis and sepsis. The direct cause of acute head and neck infections is often unknown but it has been suggested that they are due to a disturbance of the normal bacterial growing in the mouth or are from dental origin.

The most common microorganisms identified from these infections in published studies are a group of bacteria known as viridans group streptococci (VGS). There are over 30 individual species of bacteria in the viridans group and VGS are difficult to identify to the level of a single species because of their variability. There is a lack of species identification within the hospital setting and this project aims to gain a deeper understanding of the microorganisms causing acute head and neck infections, focusing on identification of individual species of VGS bacteria.

The investigators will analyse bacterial DNA to determine which species have been identified and will also look at patient data and clinical outcomes (eg. length of hospital stay) to determine if the species causing the infection has any effect on patients.