Paraauricular soft-tissue abscess associated with Peptoniphilus harei: a case report and literature review

Peptoniphilus harei is a gram-positive anaerobic coccus that invades soft tissues and causes suppurative infections when the skin or mucosal barrier is compromised. We report a case of P. harei infection presenting as a paraauricular soft-tissue abscess. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first documented case of such an infection in this anatomical site. A 38-year-old female patient presented to a local hospital with pain and swelling near her left ear and was subsequently referred to our hospital. Upon admission, pus was aspirated and cultured. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis identified the culture as P. harei . Upon culture confirmation, the abscess was debrided and drained, and the patient was treated with antibiotics. She made a gradual recovery. This report enhances the understanding clinicians regarding the clinical sites of infection, manifestations, diagnostic methods, and surgical and antimicrobial treatments for P. harei , thereby improving the efficiency of diagnosis and treatment.