Brain abscess: clinical aspects of 100 patients.

OBJECTIVE: To verify if, in the last two decades, there have been any changes in epidemiological, clinical, diagnostic, therapeutic and prognostic aspects of patients with brain abscess.

METHOD: We studied retrospectively 100 patients discharged over a 17-year period from Ca' Foncello Regional Hospital, Treviso, Italy with a diagnosis of brain abscess.

RESULTS: Post-surgical abscesses were more frequent than those related to contiguous infections and the spectrum of etiologic agents was very heterogeneous. A cerebral neoplasm was the initial neuroradiological diagnosis in 13 patients; 72 patients underwent a neurosurgical procedure. A comatose state at presentation was associated with an unfavourable outcome.

CONCLUSION: With the exception of some epidemiological aspects, which varied from the literature, in spite of the improvements in diagnostic procedures and treatment, no significant changes occurred in the prognosis of patients with brain abscess.