LUDWIG'S ANGINA

Potentially life threatening emergency - airway obstruction can rapidly occur

Contact anaesthethetic and surgical/oral and maxillofacial/ENT registrar immediately

Acute severe bilateral cellulites of the submandibular and sublingual spaces, often resulting from a primary dental infection of the mandibular second and third molars or after extraction of these teeth.

Clinical features

• Laryngeal oedema and stridor
• Hard diffuse swelling of the floor of the mouth and neck with a raised tongue
• Swallowing difficulty