Chronic invasive fungal sinusitis causing a pathologic Le Fort I fracture in an immunocompetent patient.

Abstract

We describe the case of a 77-year-old immunocompetent woman with a history of chronic rhinosinusitis who presented with a pathologic Le Fort I fracture after a forceful sneeze. Imaging revealed diffuse sinus opacification and a Le Fort type I complex fracture involving the maxilla, pterygoid plates, clivus, and right nasal bridge. The patient underwent endoscopic debridement of her sinuses, which revealed mucosal dehiscence and otherwise normal healthy bleeding tissue. Anatomic pathology identified necrotic bone with invasive fungal hyphae. Cultures demonstrated Burkholderia cepacia, diphtheroid organisms, and Enterococcus and Serratia spp. The patient was administered an intravenous antibiotic and antifungal for several months, but interval imaging found no significant improvement in bone healing although the stability of her palate had improved on clinical examination. Chronic rhinosinusitis has been found to be a complication of soft-tissue, orbital, and intracranial infections but, to the best of our knowledge, a pathologic facial fracture secondary to chronic invasive fungal and bacterial rhinosinusitis has not been previously reported in the literature.